Effect of acetylcholine and catecholamines on the enterochromaffin-like cells of the stomach.

Small pieces of fundic mucosa from rats were incubated for 15 minutes at 3 degrees C. in tissue culture medium, and the effects of acetylcholine, epinephrine and norepinephrine on the enterochromaffin-like cell were studied by electron microscopy with a morphometric study of the secretory granules. The addition of acetylcholine and norepinephrine did not cause significant changes in the secretory granules of the cell, while the addition of epinephrine caused a significant increase in the volume density of the secretory granules. This increase was associated with a significant decrease in electron opaque components within the secretory granules of the cell. The results suggest that the activity of the cells in rats is under direct adrenomedullary influence.