The effect of intestinal resection and urogastrone on intestinal regeneration
J. S. Thompson, L. E. Bragg and S. K. Saxena
Surgical Service, Omaha, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, NE.
Intestinal regeneration in patched intestinal defects is enhanced by both
intestinal resection and urogastrone. Our aim was to determine if these two
stimuli have synergistic effects. Ileal defects were patched with colon
serosa in 45 rabbits. Group 1 (n = 11) were control subjects; group 2 (n =
12) underwent 50% intestinal resection; group 3 (n = 11) received
urogastrone (1.5 micrograms/kg per hour subcutaneously); and group 4 (n =
11) underwent intestinal resection and received urogastrone. Animals were
killed at 7 and 14 days. Intestinal resection had the greater effect on
epithelialization. Urogastrone inhibited contraction and intestinal
resection did not. Both intestinal resection and urogastrone increased
proliferative activity. Combining intestinal resection and urogastrone did
not have a synergistic effect on epithelialization and diminished the
effect of urogastrone on proliferation and contraction. These findings
suggest that intestinal resection and urogastrone stimulate
epithelialization via similar mechanisms and that urogastrone would not
enhance regeneration during intestinal adaptation.
