Abstract
ABSTRACT: Intestinal absorption of ovalbumin (OVA), a dietary macromolecule, was studied in malnourished and normally nourished suckling mice after experimentally induced infection with rotavirus. All mice developed diarrhea within 24 to 48 h postinoculation. The malnourished animals exhibited more severe symptoms and an increased number of rotavirus-containing enterocytes in intestinal sections as compared to well-nourished mice when examined 3 d postinoculation, at the peak of diarrhea. Histopathologic examination revealed villus atrophy and pronounced vacuolization of villus enterocytes in association with malnutrition and rotavirus infection. The combination of malnutrition and viral infection resulted in more severe mucosal damage, including disruption of microvillus borders. After a single oral dose of 100 μg OVA at 3 d postinoculation, the concentration of OVA in serum, gastric content, intestinal lavage fluid, and intestinal tissue homogenates was measured at different time intervals. The concentrations of OVA in intestinal tissue were significantly higher in malnourished animals, whereas lower values were found in rota virus-infected animals. In all mice, OVA was rapidly absorbed and could be consistently detected in the serum within 5 min. OVA levels peaked at 45 to 60 min and then gradually declined. In malnourished infected animals, the uptake of OVA was rapid and resulted in significantly higher serum levels when compared to well nourished or uninfected controls, respectively. The peak uptake of OVA per g body wt was about 4.5 times more in malnourished infected compared to well-nourished infected mice and 2.5 times higher in normally nourished infected animals when compared to uninfected controls. These results indicate that rotavirus infection in association with malnutrition may cause a significant rise in gut permeability to environmental macromolecules.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Uhnoo, I., Freihorst, J., Riepenhoff-Talty, M. et al. Effect of Rotavirus Infection and Malnutrition on Uptake of a Dietary Antigen in the Intestine. Pediatr Res 27, 153–160 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199002000-00014
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199002000-00014
This article is cited by
-
Newcomers in paediatric GI pathology: childhood enteropathies including very early onset monogenic IBD
Virchows Archiv (2018)
-
Assessment of the Intestinal Barrier with Five Different Permeability Tests in Healthy C57BL/6J and BALB/cJ Mice
Digestive Diseases and Sciences (2016)
-
Lipid composition and amino acid uptake during rotavirus infection and protection with trypsin inhibitor in malnourished infant mice
Indian Journal of Clinical Biochemistry (2005)
-
Clinical uses of probiotics for stabilizing the gut mucosal barrier: successful strains and future challenges
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1996)
-
Paediatric oncology in developing countries
European Journal of Pediatrics (1991)