Abstract
The dependence of intestinal absorption of xenobiotics on the blood flow rate increases from blood flow independent to blood flow limited absorption as the absorbabilitiy of the substances increases. Since the absorbed substances are mainly drained by the blood flowing through the subepithelial vessels, not only the total flow rate of an intestinal segment but also the intramural blood flow pattern influences the absorption rate. The villous countercurrent exchange represents an additional resistance to the absorption. In rat jejunum a time-dependent decrease of absorption complicates the analysis of experimental data.