Determination of Gastrin in Serum

Abstract

Stadil, Flemming & Rehfeld, Jens F. 1973. Determination of Gastrin in Serum. An Evaluation of the Reliability of a Radioimmunoassay. Scand. J. Gastroent. 8, 101-112.

In view of conflicting results of gastrin determination, a radioimmunoassay technique has been evaluated in detail. Free and bound hormone was separated by anionic exchange resins, uncoated charcoal, or polyethylene glycol. Similar results were obtained for the three methods. Heparin, sodium chloride, and protein influenced the determinations. The reliability of the assay was investigated by recovery experiments, dilution experiments, experiments with mixtures of sera, and by determinations using antisera raised against different antigens. After an overnight fast, mean concen-trations of gastrin (in pmole per 1 serum, ± S.E.M. or range) were 24 ± 2.1 in 120 normal subjects, 23 ± 1.1 in 103 patients with duodenal idcer, 27 ± 2.8 in 19 patients with prepyloric ulcer, 415 (14-1705) in 36 patients with pernicious anaemia, and 4987 (123-61360) in 11 patients with the Zollinger-Ellison syndrome. No difference was found between normal subjects and duodenal ulcer patients of the same age, nor between males and females. There was no general tendency for gastrin concentrations to increase with age.

Key-words::

• Duodenal ulcer
• gastrin
• pernicious anaemia, prepyloric ulcer
• radioimmunoassay
• Zollinger-Ellison syndrome