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Mucosal protective effects of vitamin E and misoprostol during acute radiation-induced enteritis in rats

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Abstract

Cytotoxic effects of ionizing radiation on gastrointestinal epithelium may be mediated by oxygen free radicals. Therapeutic intervention directed toward oxidant scavenging and increasing tissue oxygen tension may provide a novel approach to management. We investigated the effects of a nonenzymatic oxygen radical scavenger (vitamin E) and an exogenous PGE1 analog known to increase mucosal blood flow (misoprostol) on acute radiation enteritis. Rats were pretreated with: (1) vitamin E, (2) misoprostol, or (3) a combination of both agents prior to 10 Gy abdominal radiation. Three days following irradiation, net fluid absorption usingin vivo isolated loops, mucosal histology, and mucosal morphometry using a computerized videoplan were determined in jejunum, ileum, and colon. Nonirradiated control intestine demonstrated net fluid absorption in all segments, which was not altered by vitamin E and/or misoprostol treatment. Irradiation significantly reduced net fluid absorption in jejunum, ileum, and colon. Vitamin E administered prior to irradiation maintained jejunal, ileal, and colonic fluid absorption near control levels. In contrast misoprostol or a combination of vitamin E and misoprostol did not provide protection against the injury caused by abdominal irradiation. Alterations in intestinal fluid absorption occurred without significant changes in histologic or morphometric appearance. In conclusion, ionizing radiation reducesin vivo intestinal fluid absorption without significant changes in histologic or morphometric appearance. Treatment with vitamin E, but not misoprostol, protects gastrointestinal mucosa against radiation-induced absorptive injury.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, 519 Robert Newton Research Building, T6G 2C2, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Lonnie R. Empey BSc, Jamie D. Papp MD, Lawrence D. Jewell MD &  Richard N. Fedorak MD

  2. Department of Pathology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

    Lonnie R. Empey BSc, Jamie D. Papp MD, Lawrence D. Jewell MD &  Richard N. Fedorak MD

Authors
  1. Lonnie R. Empey BSc
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  2. Jamie D. Papp MD
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  3. Lawrence D. Jewell MD
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  4. Richard N. Fedorak MD
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Additional information

This work was supported in part by grants from the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research and the Canadian Foundation of Ileitis and Colitis.

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Empey, L.R., Papp, J.D., Jewell, L.D. et al. Mucosal protective effects of vitamin E and misoprostol during acute radiation-induced enteritis in rats. Digest Dis Sci 37, 205–214 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01308173

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01308173

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