In Vivo Reversibility of the Jejunal Glucose and Cation Transport Alteration Caused by Intraluminal Surfactants in the Rat

Abstract

Tied jejunal loops in anesthetized rats were under standardized conditions pre-exposed for 30 min with Tyrode solution containing surfactants. Five, 20 or 150 min after washout of bulk surfactant, the loops were re-instilled with Tyrode containing glucose at 5-15 mM. Net glucose, Na and K transport were studied for 15 min by changes in intraluminal amounts, and compared with results obtained in control rats. The surfactants (mM) tested were the anionics dioctylsulfosuccinate (5.6) and dodecylsulfate (8.5-17), the cationics cetrimonium bromide (2.1-4.1) and benzalkonium chloride (2.1), the nonionics Triton X100 (0.25%) and Lubrol WX (0.25-0.5%) plus cholic acid (4.9) and desoxycholic acid (1.3-2.5). In most cases, the glucose transport was normal or fairly normal after 150 min, most of the restoration taking place shortly after surfactant removal. However, Lubrol in particular caused more irreversible effects. Generally, the changes in net cation transport tended to be less easily reversible than the alteration in glucose transport. In so far as a normal or near to normal glucose transport is unlikely to occur unless both functional and structural integrity of the epithelium is preserved, the results indicate that in most cases there is but insignificant epithelial damage under the experimental conditions. Since these surfactants can interact with glucose transport in the same technique even at lower concentration and shorter incubation time than used here, it is concluded that the interaction of surfactants with intestinal transport is not necessarily linked to gross histopathological changes.