Platelet activating factor (PAF) is a phospholipid mediator known as potent ulcerogenic agent but its physiological role is still unknown in the gastrointestinal tract. Lyso PAF the immediate PAF procursor has no deleterious effect in the gastrointestinal tract. We have previously reported that lyso PAF is produced by gastric mucosa in basal condition and in response to gastrin in healthy men. Helicobacter pylori metabolises lyso PAF to produce PAF. The aim was to study the effect of PAF on the gastric acid secretion. Isolated rabbit glands were used as a model and acid secretion was assessed by (14C) Aminopyrine (AP) uptake. PAF and histamine stimulated AP accumulation time- and dose-dependently. PAF-induced AP accumulation was supressed by omeprazole and Fura 2. BN50727 a specific PAF antagonist inhibited PAF-induced AP accumulation. The presence of a PAF receptor transcript was investigated by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from total mRNA using two primers in which oligonucleotides were synthetized from the human leucocyte PAF receptor cDNA. A single RT-PCR band of the transcript with expected size was detected in the crude isolated cell fraction. These results and others from our laboratory suggest that PAF stimulates gastric acid secretion via specific receptor on the parietal cells and H. pylori produces PAF which may induce mucosal injury directly or indirectly via acid pathway.