Pyloric antrum is the initial portion of the pyloric part of the stomach

Stomach

The stomach is a muscular, hollow, dilated part of the alimentary canal which functions as an important organ of the digestive tract in some animals, including vertebrates, echinoderms, insects , and molluscs. It is involved in the second phase of digestion, following mastication .The stomach is...

. It is near the bottom of the stomach, proximal to the pyloric sphincter, which separates the stomach and the duodenum

Duodenum

The duodenum is the first section of the small intestine in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear and the terms anterior intestine or proximal intestine may be used instead of duodenum...

.

It may temporarily become partially or completely shut off from the remainder of the stomach during digestion

Digestion

Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into smaller components that are more easily absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism: a breakdown of large food molecules to smaller ones....

 by peristaltic contraction of the prepyloric sphincter

Sphincter

A sphincter is an anatomical structure, or a circular muscle, that normally maintains constriction of a natural body passage or orifice and which relaxes as required by normal physiological functioning...

; it is demarcated, sometimes, from the second part of the pyloric part of the stomach (pyloric canal

Pyloric canal

The pyloric canal, also known as the canalis pyloricus, is the opening between the stomach and the small intestine - External links :*...

) by a slight groove.

Function

The pyloric antrum is the location of several important endocrine cells including Gastrin

Gastrin

In humans, gastrin is a peptide hormone that stimulates secretion of gastric acid by the parietal cells of the stomach and aids in gastric motility. It is released by G cells in the antrum of the stomach, duodenum, and the pancreas...

-producing G Cells

G cell

In anatomy, the G cell is a type of cell in the stomach that secretes gastrin. It works in conjunction with gastric chief cells and parietal cells.G cells are found deep within the gastric glands of the stomach antrum, and occasionally in the pancreas....

 (stimulate acid production) and the luminal-pH-sensitive population of somatostatin

Somatostatin

Somatostatin is a peptide hormone that regulates the endocrine system and affects neurotransmission and cell proliferation via interaction with G-protein-coupled somatostatin receptors and inhibition of the release of numerous secondary hormones.Somatostatin...

 producing of D cells (responsible for shutting off acid secretion. There is a second hormone-sensitive population near the fundus

Fundus (stomach)

The fundus of the stomach is the left portion of the stomach's body, and is marked off from the remainder of the body by a plane passing horizontally through the cardiac orifice....

.)

Etymology

pylorus — gatekeeper,
antrum — cave; cavern; hollow place with overarching foliage; cavity, hollow; tomb

Sources

• William F Ganong. "Review of Medical Physiology, 22nd Edition."
• Physiology Lecture Notes.

External links

• Controversy over definition at plig.org - "Abdominal Cavity: The stomach"