A. Mata et al., NEUROTENSIN INCREASES INTESTINAL ADAPTATION AND REDUCES ENTEROGLUCAGON-LIKE IMMUNOREACTIVITY AFTER LARGE-BOWEL RESECTION IN RATS, The European journal of surgery, 163(5), 1997, pp. 387-393
Objetive: To assess the effects of giving neurotensin on intestinal ad
aptation after colectomy and their relation to enteroglucagon-like imm
unoreactivity. Design: Laboratory experiment. Setting: Teaching hospit
al, Spain. Material: 55 Male Wistar rats. Interventions: All animals w
ere anaesthetised before undergoing laparotomy; 24 animals had 75% of
their colon resected. Half of the animals (12 in each group) were trea
ted with neurotensin (600 mu g/kg body wt/day) for 14 days. Main outco
me measures: Differences in the number of mitoses and in nuclear antig
en staining of proliferating cells in the intestinal mucosal crypts; p
lasma enteroglucagon-like immunoreactivity. Results: After colon resec
tion, the proliferative status, number of mitoses (p < 0.01), and nucl
ear antigen staining of proliferating cells (p < 0.001) increased sign
ificantly in the jejunum of animals treated with neurotensin (p < 0.05
). Less pronounced effects were observed in colon and ileum. Plasma en
teroglucagon-like immunoreactivity levels fell significantly in all an
imals given neurotensin (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Neurotensin increases
the adaptive intestinal process after colon resection and reduces pla
sma enteroglucagon-like immunoreactivity in rats.