Altered patterns of mucin secretion in gastric hyperplasia in mice.

Gastric hyperplasia occurred more frequently among densely housed mice than mice housed singly, and crowding stress may have been implicated in this increased prevalence. Affected stomachs had striking increases in sulfomucin secretion when compared with unaffected gastric mucosa. The mucin changes suggested incomplete maturation of mucous cells in this condition and were similar to those reported in association with early neoplastic or pre-neoplastic lesions in the stomach of both man and rodents.