Vagotomy and accompanying pyloroplasty down-regulates ghrelin mRNA but does not affect ghrelin secretion.

In this study, we have examined how the lack of vagus activity affects the long-term secretion of total and active ghrelin. We subjected mice to sham-operation, pyloroplasty or vagotomy and pyloroplasty. The study lasted for 2 weeks, during which body weight development and daily food intake was monitored. At the end of the study, the mice were sacrificed, and serum and fundus were collected. Measurements of total and active serum ghrelin revealed no difference between the surgical groups and sham-operated mice, despite the fact that fundic ghrelin mRNA was down-regulated. The results presented here suggest that the vagus activity is not required for the long-term secretion of neither total nor active ghrelin in mice. They also suggest that fundic ghrelin mRNA expression is affected by pyloroplasty and vagotomy but that this effect does not translate into changes in ghrelin levels in the circulation.