Aspirin-induced damage in the dog Heidenhain pouch and cytoprotection with 16,16-dimethyl PGE2.

The gastric mucosa of animals and man can be damaged by noxious agents and protected by prostaglandins. We developed a Heidenhain pouch dog model which allows the study of multiple doses of the protective or noxious agent. Mucosal damage in the pouch caused by instillation of 160 mM aspirin suspended in 150 mM HCl for two 15-min periods was determined by measuring hemoglobin concentration in isotonic mannitol washes. Hemoglobin levels 24 h after the administration of the acid-aspirin suspension were significantly higher than basal levels. Pretreatment with oral doses of 0.3-3 micrograms/kg 16,16-dimethyl PGE2 at 24 and 18 h and 30 min before the acid-aspirin suspension decreased hemoglobin concentrations in the washes (p less than 0.001).