This paper is only available as a PDF. To read, Please Download here.
Abstract
A previous study has shown that long-term feeding of ethanol in high doses (36% of
total calories) causes marked changes in intestinal mucosal disaccharidase activity
as well as blunting of the intestinal villi. To determine whether similar damage occurs
in response to a more moderate ethanol exposure, we pairfed rats a liquid diet that
provided 15.5% of total calories from ethanol for 5 weeks. In the proximal segment
of the intestine, we found that ethanol did not affect the total activities of maltase
(8.0 ± 2.4 U vs. control value of 6.7 ± 1.8 U), sucrase (1.5 ± 0.5 U vs. control of
1.2 ± 0.3 U), or lactase (125 ± 42 mU vs. control of 107 ± 36 mU). Similarly, we found
no differences from control values for the three disaccharidases in the middle or
distal small bowel. The mucosal protein content of the experimental animals did not
differ from values found in the control animals. In addition, no change in intestinal
vilius height or crypt depth was detected. The zinc content of hair and serum was
not affected by the ethanol feeding. We conclude that prolonged ingestion of a moderate
dose of ethanol does not damage the small intestinal disaccharidase enzymes, mucosal
protein content, or intestinal architecture.
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Translational ResearchAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Small intestinal damage and changes in cell population by ethanol ingestion in the rat.Gastroenterology. 1974; 66: 226-234
- The effect of ethanol feeding on zinc balance and tissue zinc levels in rats maintained on zinc-deficient diets.J Lab Clin Med. 1982; 100: 211-217
- Does zinc deficiency affect intestinal protein content or disaccharidase activity?.J Lab Clin Med. 1985; 106: 708-711
- The determination of zinc in hair using atomic absorption spectroscopy.J Chem Educ. 1975; 52: 544-545
- Determination of serum zinc in normal adult subjects by atomic absorption spectrophotometry.Am J Clin Pathol. 1972; 57: 506-510
- Protein measurement with the Folin phenol reagent.J Biol Chem. 1951; 193: 265-275
- Assay of intestinal disaccharidases.Anal Biochem. 1968; 22: 99-107
- Does alcohol cause duodenitis?.Am J Dig Dis. 1969; 14: 239-244
- Effects of prolonged alcohol administration and a high carbohydrate-low protein diet on the activities of the jejunal brush border enzymes in the rat.Gut. 1982; 23: 962-967
- Symptomatic intestinal disaccharidase deficiency in alcoholics.Gastroenterology. 1977; 72: 680-684
- Alcohol-induced impairment of carbohydrate absorption.Clin Res. 1972; 20: 459
- Effect of ethanol and other alcohol on the transport of amino acids and glucose by everted sacs of rat small intestine.Biochem Biophys Acta. 1967; 135: 1000-1007
- Pancreatic function and intestinal absorption in chronic alcoholism.Gastroenterology. 1970; 59: 657-664
- Effect of ethanol on motility of the small intestine.Johns Hopkins Med J. 1974; 135: 17-24
Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
April 1,
1986
Received:
November 11,
1985
Footnotes
☆Supported in part by University of Illinois Biomedical Research Support Grant 2-5-23651.
Identification
Copyright
© 1986 Published by Elsevier Inc.
