Abstract

Mitragynine, an indole alkaloid from Thai folk medicine Mitragyna speciosa, exerts agonistic effects on opioid receptors. Gastric acid secretion is proposed to be regulated by opioid receptors in the central nervous system (CNS). Previously, we reported the dual roles (inhibition via micro-opioid receptors and stimulation via kappa-opioid receptors) of the opioid system in the central control of gastric acid secretion. We investigated whether mitragynine affects gastric acid secretion via opioid receptors in the CNS. Injection of mitragynine (30 microg) alone into the lateral cerebroventricle did not have a significant effect on basal gastric acid secretion in the perfused stomach of anesthetized rats. Injection of mitragynine (3-30 microg) into the fourth cerebroventricle, like morphine, inhibited 2-deoxy-D-glucose-stimulated gastric acid secretion. The inhibitory effect of mitragynine (30 microg) was reversed by naloxone (100 microg). These results suggest that mitragynine has a morphine-like action on gastric acid secretion in the CNS.