Effects and Mechanisms of Electrical Stimulation of the Stomach, Duodenum, Ileum, and Colon on Gastric Tone in Dogs

Previous studies have shown that gastric tone is inhibited by the electrical stimulation of some parts of the gut. The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of gastric electrical stimulation (GES), duodenal electrical stimulation (DES), ileal electrical stimulation (IES), and colonic electrical stimulation (CES) on gastric tone and the possible mechanism of electrical stimulation on gastric tone. Experiments were performed to study: (1) the effects of the four stimulations (GES, DES, IES, CES) on gastric tone; (2) the role of the nitrergic pathway’s involvement in the effect of IES on gastric tone. Each dog was implanted with one pair of gastric, duodenal, ileal, and colonic electrodes and a gastric cannula. A computerized barostat was used to assess gastric tone by measuring the gastric intra-balloon volume. We found that: (1) all methods of stimulation significantly inhibited gastric tone; (2) the percentage of increase in gastric volume was highest with CES and lowest with DES; however, there was no significant difference in the percentage of inhibition among the four stimulations; (3) the inhibitory effect of IES on gastric tone was abolished by intravenous nitric oxide synthase inhibitor. It was concluded that electrical stimulation of the stomach, intestine, or colon with long pulses has an inhibitory effect on gastric tone, and the most effective stimulation is CES. The inhibitory effect is not organ-specific and is unrelated to the distance between the stimulation site and the affected organ. The inhibitory effect of IES on gastric tone is mediated by the nitrergic pathway.