[Relationship between factors examined at health examination and serum pepsinogen levels in healthy adults. Physical measurements, blood chemical tests, drinking and smoking].

OBJECTIVE: We measured serum pepsinogen (PG) levels in healthy adults and examined their physical measurements, blood chemical test values, current drinking and smoking to investigate relationships between these factors and levels of serum PG components (serum PG I, PG II and PG I/II ratio). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 452 male adults in their 40's, who were determined to be normal or to have only chronic gastritis by endoscopy or X-ray examination of the upper gastrointestinal tract, were studied. PG I and PG II levels in sera were measured, and their relationship with physical measurements and blood chemical test values, and also with current amounts of drinking and smoking, were examined. RESULTS: 1) Height, body weight, body surface area, GOT, GPT and creatinine were found to significantly differ according to serum PG I level; body surface area, GPT and ALP significantly differed according to serum PG II level. However, none of the factors examined showed any significant correlation with the PG I/II ratio. 2) When subjects were divided into positive and negative cases using the evaluation criteria of PG components for gastric cancer screening (determined as positive on the basis of serum PG I level < or = 70 ng/ml and PG I/II ratio < or = 3.0), proposed by Miki et al., none of the factors differed significantly between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: 1) Serum PG levels were associated with stature, serum transaminase and creatinine. 2) Although serum PG levels were associated with several factors, the effect of physical measurements and blood chemical tests on the results of the evaluation criteria of PG components proposed by Miki et al, were not remarkable.

Interference of an anesthetic preparation with plasma triglyceride determinations.

A marked elevation in plasma triglycerides is observed when experimental animals are anesthetized with a pentobarbital sodium injection (Nembutal), a most widely used anesthetic in animal experiments. This is proven, however, to be a false rise due to the interference of propylene glycol present in the solvent of the injection with the plasma triglyceride determinations. One mole of propylene glycol produces one mole of formaldehyde by oxidation. The formaldehyde thus generated from propylene glycol mixes with those from glycerol moiety of plasma triglycerides, and gives an enhanced color reaction to all chromogenic reactions with formaldehyde. Since most of the chemical methods for plasma triglyceride determination is based on either one of these color reactions, we have to pay attention to a hypertriglyceridemia due to such influence as exerted by a solvent additive of propylene glycol upon the triglyceride measurements.