Intragastrically administered lysophosphatidic acids protect against gastric ulcer in rats under water-immersion restraint stress.

Background And Aim: Lysophosphatidic acid exerts important physiological effects on many types of animal cells through its specific binding to several G protein-coupled receptors. In particular, its potent wound-healing effect has attracted much attention. To determine whether lysophosphatidic acids in a foodstuff and Chinese medicine are effective in protecting against gastric ulcer, we subjected rats to water-immersion restraint stress.

Formation of lysophosphatidic acid, a wound-healing lipid, during digestion of cabbage leaves.

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) is a lipid mediator that plays a role in the process of wound healing in animal tissues, including the digestive tract. We determined LPA in several foodstuffs, and found that cabbage leaves were the richest source of LPA. We also found that, at 22 and 195 nmol/g (wet weight), LPA and phosphatidic acid (PA) were respectively formed during mastication of raw cabbage leaves and that the resulting PA was converted to LPA by pancreatic phospholipase A(2).