The Source of Carbon Dioxide for Gastric Acid Production

The source of carbon dioxide for the chemical reaction leading to the production of gastric acid is unknown. The decarboxylation of an amino acid releases carbon dioxide. Pepsinogens provide a rich source of the amino acid arginine. Both the source of carbon dioxide, arginine, and the consequence of arginine decarboxylation, agmatine, have been studied. The site of carbon dioxide production has been related to the survival of the parietal cell. An immunohistochemical study has been carried out on glycol methacrylate embedded gastric biopsies from the normal stomach of 38 adult patients. The sections have been stained using polyclonal antibody to pepsinogen II, polyclonal antibody to agmatine, and polyclonal antibody to Helicobacter pylori. Pepsinogen 11 and agmatine are found in the parietal cell canaliculi. This is consistent with the production of carbon dioxide from arginine in the parietal cell canaliculi. Evidence is presented for the decarboxylation of arginine derived from the activation segment of pepsinogen as the source of carbon dioxide for the production of gastric acid. The production of carbon dioxide by the decarboxylation of arginine in the parietal cell canaliculus enables the extracellular hydration of carbon dioxide at the known site of carbonic anhydrase activity. The extracellular production of acid in the canaliculus together with the presence of agmatine helps to explain why the parietal cells are not destroyed during the formation of gastric acid. Agmatine is found in the mucus secreting cells of the stomach and its role in acid protection of the stomach is discussed. Anat Rec, 292:79-86, 2009. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.