Pantothenic Duodenal ulcer

Many different types of lesions have been observed (very often at autopsy) in animals suffering from severe pantothenic acid deficiency. These may involve the skin, the adrenals, the entire gastrointestinal tract, nerves, and spinal cord. Functionally, in chickens fertility may be reduced by pantothenic acid deficiency to practically zero64 without any outward signs being shown by the fowls. Recently, pantothenic acid deficiency has been found to produce duodenal ulcers in about 60 per cent of the rats tested.65 It is required for bone development66 and is implicated in antibody responses.67... 

Experimental duodenal ulcers until recently, were not easily induced in the most commonly used laboratory animals (e.g., rats, mice)( 1 ). The few available methods were complex and not widely used. For example, the chronic deficiency of pantothenic acid in certain strains of rats (13), 24-h sc infusion of secretagogues (e.g., histamine, carbachol, pentagastrin) in fasted rats (14),... 

Deficient animals have an impaired ability to respond to metabolic and physical stress as a result of this decreased adrenocortical hormone synthesis, although this may be accompanied by enhanced sensitivity of target tissues to hormone action. Some strains of rat are susceptible to the development of duodenal ulcers in pantothenic acid deficiency. Ulceration can be prevented by adrenalectomy and is exacerbated by administration of glucocorticoid hormones. 

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