Goblet cell number in the ileum of rats denervated during suckling and weaning.

The enteric nervous system plays a role on the stimulation of secretory cells of intestinal epithelia. We have demonstrated that ablation of ENS stimulates epithelial cell proliferation. As goblet cells are important constituents of the epithelial sheet, it is mandatory to investigate separately this cell type. The myenteric plexus of the ileum of rats in postnatal development was partially removed by the serosal application of benzalkonium chloride (BAC). Three groups of animals were used: those where BAC application was at 13 days and sacrifice was at 15 (13/28-day-old) or 23 days after treatment (13/36-day-old), and those where BAC was applied at 21 days and rats were killed 15 days after treatment (21/36-day-old) . The number of goblet cells in the ileum was estimated in sections stained by periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) histochemistry. In the 13/28 and 21/36 groups, the number of goblet cells was significantly higher after BAC treatment. These results suggest that the myenteric denervation may have an acute effect on the number of goblet cell in suckling and weanling rats, probably through submucous plexus.