Abstract:Objective
To investigate the effect of the spleen on the function of intestinal barrier during the course of acute pancreatitis in rats.
Methods Rats were randomly divided into four groups: sham operation group; actue pancreatitis group; splenectomy group;splenectomy plus acute pancreatitis group.The serum levels of TNFα,IL1,IL6 and IL10 in each group were examined 24 hours after operation.Two days after operation,the rate of bacterial translocation(BT) was determined and the terminal ileum was excised and examined by transmission electron microscopy to detect the injury of intestinal mucosa.
Results The serum levels of TNFα,IL1β,IL6 and IL10 in splenectomy plus acute pancreatitis group were 3.06±3.61,16.46±5.52,19.90±6.89,6.94±3.93,and in acute pancreatitis group were 19.93±2.38, 42.79±4.31, 20.19±3.35, 39.28±12.69 respectively. The values of TNFα, IL1β and IL10 were significantly lower in splenectomy plus acute pancreatitis group than those in acute pancreatitis group(P<0.05).The rate of bacterial translocation was 40 percent in splenectomy plus acute pancreatitis group,but 93.3 percent in acute pancreatitis group,and the difference was statistically significant(P<0.05).Histologic examination revealed mild edema of intestinal mucosal epithelium and normally appearing intact mucosa in splenectomy plus acute pancreatitis group,whereas in acute pancreatitis group revealed severe injuries of intestinal mucosa,including apparent edema,necrosis of intestinal villi,degeneration of epithelial cells,infiltration of neutrophils and bacterial translocation. 〖WTHZ〗Conclusions The spleen can exacerbate the inflammatory response of acute pancreatitis by markedly promoting the production and release of inflammatory mediators. Splenectomy can reduce the production and release of inflammatory mediators, and thus decrease the damage of intestinal mucosa and the rate of BT.