Abstract
Free radicals have been implicated in the pathogenesis of ischemic-reperfusion injury in the bowel. The protective role of the antioxidant enzymes has been studied, but no information exists on the development of these enzymes in the small intestine (SI). The ontogeny and glucocorticoid-enhanced maturation of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (C), and glutathione peroxidase has been defined in the lung. We measured the activities of C, SOD, and the superoxide generating enzyme xanthine oxidase (XO), in the rat SI. Pregnant rats at 18, 19, and 20 days gestation received 4 injections of 0.2 mg/kg of dexamethasone or an equal volume of saline (S) over 48 hours. Rats aged 14-104 days were injected with 50 mg/kg of hydrocortisone or S. The rats were killed 12 hours after the last injection. Assays were done using homogenates of the SI. Glucocorticoid administration hastened the attainment of adult values for maltase and sucrase, but had no effect on the activity of C, SOD, or XO. The table presents the mean enzyme activity ± SEM expressed as units/tng of DNA.
The increase in activity with maturity suggests a less effective defense system in younger animals placing them at increased risk for free radical injury to the intestine. Exogenous glucocorticoids do not alter the activities of these enzymes.
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Engelhardt, E., Beggs, J., Neu, J. et al. MATURATION OF ANTIOXIDANT ENZYME ACTIVITY IN THE RAT SMALL INTESTINE. Pediatr Res 21 (Suppl 4), 212 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00274
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00274