Jejunal Mucosal Injury and Restitution: Role of Hydrolytic Products of Food Digestion P. R. KVIETYS, R. D. SPECIAN, M. B. GRISHAM, AND P. TSO American Journal of Physiology 24:G384-G391, 1991

The authors examined the effects of hydrolytic products of carbohydrate, protein, and lipid digestion on jejunal injury and restitution in anesthetized rats. Mucosal epithelial integrity was assessed by measuring blood-to-lumen clearance of 51Cr-labeled EDTA administered as a bolus into the femoral vein. When the intestinal lumen was perfused with 3% hydrolyzed casein or 150 mmol/L glucose there was no effect on 51Cr-EDTA clearance when compared with saline controls. However, perfusion with emulsified lipids (20 mmol/L sodium taurocholate and 10 to 40 mmol/L oleic acid) resulted in a statistically significant (p < .05) increase in 51Cr-EDTA clearance in a dose-dependent fashion. When lipid infusion was terminated and saline perfusion resumed, 51Cr-EDTA clearance returned to control levels.Histologic examination of the jejunal mucosa revealed damage of the epithelial lining of the villous tips in animals treated with lipid infusion. The injury was characterized by gaps in the epithelial lining of the villo...