Pepsinogen gastrin mesor ratio: a potential simple marker for gastric secretory function.

As compared to control subjects, patients with duodenal ulcer show decreased levels of serum G and increased levels of serum Group I pepsinogen (PGI). On the other hand, pregnant women in their third trimester show an increased level of serum G and decreased levels of serum PGI. Gastrin stimulates gastric secretion and has a trophic effect on the parietal cells. Concentrations of PGI in serum reflect the capacity of pepsin-secreting cells which are, in turn, closely related to the parietal cell mass. Pepsinogen/G ratio (PGI/G) could represent the effective acid-peptic secretory capacity. This study suggests that for screening and clinical purposes PGI/G ratio provides a good potentially discriminatory marker of gastric secreting capacity reliably correlating and improving the diagnostic significance of single G and/or PGI serum levels.