SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC STUDIES ON NORMAL GASTRIC MUCOSAE AND REGENERATIVE MUCOSAE OVER GASTRIC ULCERS

Abstract

Normal gastric mucosae (5 young adults) and the regenerative mucosae over gastric ulcers (45 patients) were biopsied endoscopically and studied under a scanning electron microscope.
The regenerative epithelium of the gastric ulcer first appeared as a single layer of flat epithelium gradually spreading over the bottom of the ulcer and gradually assuming a palisade-like structure. A pavement-like structure then appeared through segmentation. Gastric foveolae formation followed, giving the appearance of a pyloric gland-like structure so as to show a transition to the surrounding gastric mucosa. Observation under high magnification revealed numerous processes of various shapes on all cell surfaces, probably representing a form of mucus secretion.
Intestinal epithelial metaplasia was found in 37% out of 45 gastric ulcers. Such change appeared separately in each gastric foveola, followed by a gradual spread through fusion.
Sharp demarcation was found between the portion with intestinal epithelial metaplasia and that with gastric epithelium, and between the portion with fundic glands and that with pyloric glands.