smectite and Disease-Models--Animal

Five million people currently live with Crohn's disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis, the two major forms of inflammatory bowel disease. Available treatments frequently result in side effects that compromise the immune health of the patient. Consequently, alternative therapies that cause fewer systemic effects are needed. Dioctahedral smectite clays have been utilized to treat medical conditions, including diarrheal and enteric disease. Herein, we report the ability of a refined dioctahedral smectite (NovaSil, NS) to sorb inflammatory proteins and reduce inflammation in a TNBS (2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid) mouse model of CD. We also investigated whether NS could rescue gut microbial diversity in TNBS-induced mice.. ELISA, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy were employed to characterize the NS-cytokine interaction in vitro. A TNBS mouse colitis model was utilized to study the efficacy of NS supplementation for 4 weeks. The three treatment groups included control, TNBS, and TNBS + NS. DNA was extracted from feces and sorted for bacterial phylogenetic analysis.. Results suggest that NS binds TNFα in vitro. In TNBS-treated mice, supplementation with NS significantly reduced weight loss, and serum proinflammatory cytokine levels (IL-2, IL-6, and IL-12, TNFα, IFNγ) compared with the TNBS group. TNBS-treated mice demonstrated a significant reduction in gut microbiota species richness when compared with the TNBS + NS group and control group.. NovaSil mitigated the effects of TNBS-induced colitis based on reduction in systemic markers of inflammation, significant improvement in weight gain, and intestinal microbial profile.

Topics: Aluminum Silicates; Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Bacteria; Clay; Colitis; Colon; Crystallography, X-Ray; Cytokines; Disease Models, Animal; Feces; Female; Gastrointestinal Agents; Inflammation Mediators; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Powder Diffraction; Ribotyping; Silicates; Time Factors; Trinitrobenzenesulfonic Acid; Weight Gain

The study aimed to confirm bacterial translocation (BT) in rats with acute liver failure (ALF), to explore the correlation between the concentration of lipopolysaccharides and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) expression, and further, to evaluate the curative effects of lactulose and montmorillonite (smecta) in this setting.. D-Galactosamine was injected into the abdominal cavity of rats to induce ALF. Escherichia coli JM109 labeled with enhanced green fluorescent protein was administered to track BT. Simultaneously, the rats were given lactulose or smecta. Blood samples were collected for measuring liver function, cytokines, endotoxins, and TLR4 expression. Representative tissue specimens from the liver, spleen, and mesenteric lymph nodes were aseptically harvested for bacterial identification by agarose gel electrophoresis, laser scanning confocal microscopy, and flow cytometry.. BT occurred in ALF, accompanied by impaired liver function with increased cytokines, endotoxins, and TLR4 expression. After the treatment with lactulose or smecta, all these parameters decreased, including the relative quantity of translocated bacteria while albumin increased. Furthermore, compared with the lactulose treatment group, the parameters in the smecta treatment group improved. Moreover, in the group in which smecta was given for prophylaxis, there was greater improvement than with treatment.. Intestinal intervention with lactulose or smecta can ameliorate BT; moreover, smecta has a better effect than lactulose, and its preventive effect was also better than its therapeutic effect.

Topics: Animals; Bacterial Translocation; Bentonite; Cytokines; Disease Models, Animal; Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; Endotoxins; Escherichia coli; Flow Cytometry; Galactosamine; Gastrointestinal Agents; Green Fluorescent Proteins; Intestines; Lactulose; Liver; Liver Failure, Acute; Lymph Nodes; Male; Microscopy, Confocal; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Silicates; Spleen; Toll-Like Receptor 4