&NA;This review of the past year's literature focuses on progress in the elucidation of the pathways and mechanisms controlling gastric exocrine (ie, acid and pepsin) and endocrine (ie, gastrin, histamine, somatostatin, and prostaglandin) secretion at the central, peripheral, and intracellular levels by neural, hormonal, and paracrine agents. The use of selective receptor antagonists (eg, bombesin/gastrin‐releasing peptide antagonists, vasoactive intestinal peptide antagonists, gastrin antagonists, cholecystokinin‐A antagonists, and muscarinic antagonists), antisera (eg, somatostatin antiserum and secretin anti‐serum), inhibitors (eg, indomethacin,NG‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester, and omeprazole) and toxins (eg, capsaicin) have furthered our understanding of the potential physiologic role for bombesin/gastrin‐releasing peptide, vasoactive intestinal peptide, gastrin, cholecystokinin, acetylcholine, prostaglandin, nitric oxide, hydrochloric acid, and sensory neurons in the regulation of gastric secretion. The increased use of molecular biologic techniques has provided new insights into the function of receptors (eg, gastrin, histamine, acetylcholine, somatostatin, and neuropeptide Y) and the transduction pathways to which they are coupled. Much progress has been made in our understanding of gastric physiology; much more, however, remains to be learned.Current Opinion in Gastroenterology 1993,9:889‐901