Effect of the administration of fermentable and non-fermentable dietary fibre on intestinal bacterial translocation in ascitic cirrhotic rats

Background: Bacterial. infections are frequent in cirrhosis. Experimental studies suggest a pathogenic role of intestinal bacterial. translocation in them. Both fermentable and non-fermentable fibre avoided intestinal bacterial. translocation (IBT) in animal models of gut starvation and critical illness. Aim: To assess the effect of fermentable (pectin) or non-fermentabte (lignin) fibre on IBT in ascitic cirrhotic rats. Methods: Thirty-six rats induced to cirrhosis with oral CCl4 were randomized (6 weeks after the first CCl4 dose) to receive rat chow+5% lignin (LIG, n = 13), rat chow+5% pectin (PEC, n = 13), or rat chow only (CON, n = 10). Once ascites developed, animals were laparotomized and samples of mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), ascitic fluid, portal and peripheral blood and liver, were obtained for culture. Results: IBT rate was: LIG = 5/13, PEC = 4/13, CON = 5/10 (P = N.S.). The median amount of translocated bacteria in rats with IBT was lower in the PEC group (2 x 10(2) CFU/g MLN), than in LIG (10(5) CFU/g MLN) and CON (10(4) CFU/g MLN) groups (P<0.05). All other samples were sterile except for a portal blood sample (Enterococcus foecalis) of the LIG group. Conclusions: IBT incidence is not decreased by either pectin or lignin in ascitic cirrhotic rats, but pectin supptementation reduces the amount of translocated bacteria. (c) 2007 Published by Elsevier Ltd.