The effect of adsorbant and anti-inflammatory drugs on secretion in ligated segments of pig intestine infected with Escherichia coli.

Four adsorbant drug preparations, Kaopectate, colloidal Attapulgite, noncolloidal Attapulgite and Pepto-bismol were investigated for their effects on fluid accumulation in ligated segments of pig intestine inoculated with enteropathogenic Escherichia coli. Two anti-inflammatory drugs. aspirin and methylprednisolone, and two antibiotics, lincomycin and polymyxin B, were also tested. All the drugs except the two anti-inflammatory products were given by injection into the lumen of the intestine. Aspirin was given orally and methylprednisolone was given intramuscularly. The antibiotics were tested at levels at which they had no significant antibacterial effect in in vitro tests. The adsorbant drugs colloidal Attapulgite and Pepto-bismol were shown to be effective in reducing fluid accumulation in ligated segments of pig intestine infected with enteropathogenic E. coli. In the case of Peptobismol this effect was associated with an antibacterial effect as well as an antitoxic effect, probably due to its adsorbant properties. It is possible that an aspirin-like effect in the gut due to the active ingredient bismuth subsalicylate may have contributed to the effectiveness of Pepto-bismol. Colloidal Attapulgite was demonstrated to have an antitoxic effect but did not have an antibacterial effect. In high doses, the anti-inflammatory drugs acetylsalicylic acid and methylprednisolone were marginally effective in reduction of fluid accumulation in the same test system. Lincomycin was shown to reduce intestinal fluid secretion, whereas polymyxin B had no effect.