Enhancement of intestinal sucrase activity in experimental diabetes: the role of intraluminal factors.

Experimental diabetes alters intestinal mucosal function in a variety of ways including the enhancement of both active transport processes and the activity of brush-border hydrolases. These effects could result from changes in either intraluminal factors (food, bile, pancreatic enzymes) or extraluminal factors (blood flow, hormones, nervous impulses). To determine the role of intraluminal factors we studied the effect of diabetes on segments of jejunum completely excluded from luminal continuity, but with intact blood and nerve supply. Three weeks after construction of Thiry-Vella fistulas in rats, diabetes was induced with streptozotocin. Five days later sucrase activity was measured in both the excluded segment and in the proximal jejunum. Exclusion alone resulted in a 77 per cent decrease in mucosal protein content with no change in sucrase specific activity suggesting simply a diminished number of mucosal cells. Diabetes increased the specific activity of sucrase from 0.0643 mumoles per minute per milligram of protein plus or minus 0.0077 (SEM) to 0.1074 plus or minus 0.0182 (P smaller than 0.05) in the proximal jejunum and from 0.0467 plus or minus 0.0047 to 0.1040 plus or minus 0.0191 (P smaller than 0.02) in the excluded segment. These results provide conclusive evidence that the diabetic enhancement of sucrase activity is independent of intraluminal factors and must be the consequence of extraluminal changes.