Inhibition of restraint ulcers in the rat by pyridoxine deficiency.

A rat immobilized for 24 hours will develop ulcerations in the glandular area of the stomach."'3 Although these ulcers or erosions have been attributed to stress, the mechanism that causes them is unknown.! Both vagotomy and anticholinergic drugs reduce the incidence of these ulcers, suggesting the role of acid in their production.2"'3 Studies to date, however, have failed to show consistently increased acid secretion in restrained animals."' Moreno and Brodie have suggested that restraint ulcers resemble those produced by high doses of histamine. Since the mucosa of the rat's stomach contains much histamine,8 and has a high histamineforming capacity (HFC),9 it seemed of interest to ascertain whether histamine is a mediator of restraint ulcers.