title: Electrical polarization of rectal mucosa and excretion of tetrahydroaldosterone in patients with cystic fibrosis of pancreas and in normal subjects.
abstract: The electrical potential difference (PD) across the rectal wall was measured in 26 patients with cystic fibrosis of pancreas (CFP) and in 18 healthy subjects. The PDs obtained in normal children were identical to those previously obtained in normal adults. A significantly greater dispersion of the values was observed in CFP. When the patients were divided into groups according to metachromasia in fibroblast cultures, the mean PD was increased only in the ametachromatic group. True enough, this observation suggests a difference between various forms of CFP, distinguished by metachromasia, and thus is a further indication of the heterogeneity of the disease. The greater abnormalities in metachromasia negative patients may, however, be due solely to the fact that these patients are more severely affected by the disease. The urinary excretion of tetrahydroaldosterone in patients was within the ranges obtained in controls, which excludes the possibility of secondary hyperaldosteronism as the source of increased PD. No evidence was provided in favour of a basic defect in the intestinal transport of Na+ or Cl minus, but K+ concentrations in faecal fluids of patients were significantly lower than in controls. The equilibrium concentration of K+ could be accounted for by simple passive diffusion, suggesting that the epithelium behaved inertly with respect to this ion in CFP.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000450:Aldosterone / Q000652:urine*; D001692:Biological Transport; D002648:Child; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000652:urine; D004573:Electrolytes; D005347:Fibroblasts; D006801:Humans; D007408:Intestinal Absorption; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D008564:Membrane Potentials; D012007:Rectum / Q000378:metabolism*; D012964:Sodium / Q000652:urine
chemical_list: D004573:Electrolytes; D000450:Aldosterone; D012964:Sodium