RELEASE OF INTESTINAL ENZYMES IN ACUTE MESENTERIC ISCHEMIA

Temporary (2-hour) occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery produces anatomic changes in the mucosa of the ileum similar to those observed after hemorrhagic hypotension in dogs. A significant increase in serum levels of acid phosphatase and RNAse from the lysed mucosal cells is observed after declamping. Some important changes in the chemical composition of the chyme are observed after ischemia: a marked decrease in free tryptic activity is concomitant with a simultaneous rise in acid phosphatase and β-glucuronidase from the ischemic mucosal cells. The constant gastric reflux of chyme with its altered enzymic activity may offer a pathogenetic link between the intestinal lesion and the gastric stress ulcers seen in most of the dogs surviving intestinal ischemic shock. © 1969.