title: Possibility of postprandial electrogastrography for evaluating vagal/nonvagal cholinergic activity in humans, through simultaneous analysis of postprandial heart rate variability and serum immunoreactive hormone levels.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate changes in postprandial electrogastrography (EGG) from the neurohormonal mechanisms.
  
  
  METHODS
  We measured EGG indices [frequency amplitude of normal 3-cpm (EGG-3 cpm)], high frequency amplitude of heart rate variability which has reflected cardiac parasympathetic tone, and several serum immunoreactive (ir)-hormone levels in 12 fasted male volunteers (mean age 25.3 yr).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Immediately after the liquid food intake (250 kcal), a transient decrease in EGG-3 cpm frequency (from 0.045 +/- 0.001 Hz to 0.040 +/- 0.001 Hz; p < 0.05) accompanied by an increase in high frequency amplitude (from 31.05 +/- 3.45 ms to 39.10 +/- 4.08 ms; p < 0.05), and a serum immunoreactive gastrin level increase (from 38.72 +/- 4.92 pmol/L to 54.00 +/- 10.45 pmol/L; p < 0.05) and an immunoreactive somatostatin level decrease (from 15.00 +/- 0.43 pmol/L to 13.70 +/- 0.46 pmol/L; p < 0.01) were observed, suggesting vagal excitement. EGG-3 cpm amplitude and serum immunoreactive human pancreatic polypeptide (hPP) levels significantly increased soon after ingestion, and these changes lasted for 30 min. Furthermore, there was a positive correlation between changes in EGG-3 cpm amplitude and those in serum immunoreactive hPP levels during the postprandial periods (r = 0.55, p < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Considering the reports that a cholinergic, nonvagal pathway is of major importance in food-stimulated hPP release, the present results suggest that postprandial changes in EGG-3 cpm frequency and amplitude might be a good tool for evaluating not only vagal but also nonvagal cholinergic activity in the human gut.
authors.affiliation: Fourth Department of Internal Medicine, Aichi Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kaneko
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sakakibara
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mitsuma
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Morise
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017776:Autonomic Pathways / Q000502:physiology*; D004435:Eating / Q000502:physiology*; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005755:Gastrins / Q000097:blood; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009479:Neuropeptides / Q000097:blood*; D010191:Pancreatic Polypeptide / Q000097:blood; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic / Q000502:physiology*; D013004:Somatostatin / Q000097:blood; D013270:Stomach / Q000502:physiology*; D014630:Vagus Nerve / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D005755:Gastrins; D009479:Neuropeptides; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic; D013004:Somatostatin; D010191:Pancreatic Polypeptide