title: Epidermal growth factor protects gastric mucosa against ischemia-reperfusion injury.
abstract: Epidermal growth factor (EGF) protects gastric mucosa against many injurious factors, but no study has examined whether EGF may protect against ischemia-reperfusion (I-R)-induced gastric mucosal injury. We assessed the effect of EGF pretreatment on the extent of ischemia-reperfusion-induced gastric mucosal damage in rats. Assessment of injury and protection included: the extent of macroscopic necrosis; qualitative and quantitative histology with measurement of deep mucosal necrosis; microvascular permeability after injection of fluorescein-conjugated albumin; and transmission electron microscopy. After I-R, saline-pretreated rats (placebo group) had macroscopic necrosis involving 40 +/- 6% of total gastric mucosal area. Histology revealed exfoliation of the surface epithelial cells, mucosal hemorrhages, microvascular injury, and extensive deep mucosal necrosis involving 7 +/- 5% of mucosal strips. Microvascular permeability assessed by fluorescein-conjugated albumin was significantly increased to 327 +/- 29% of that in normal rats (without ischemia-reperfusion). Transmission electron microscopy showed severe microvascular injury. EGF pretreatment significantly reduced gross mucosal necrosis to 17 +/- 6% and deep histologic mucosal necrosis to 2 +/- 1% (both p < 0.01 versus saline pretreated). Integrity of the mucosal microvessels was preserved and microvascular permeability was close to normal. This study demonstrates that EGF significantly reduces ischemia-reperfusion injury to the rat gastric mucosa and that this effect of EGF may be mediated by its protection of the mucosal microvessels.
authors.affiliation: VA Medical Center, Long Beach, California 90822.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tarnawski
authors.forename: I J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Sarfeh
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stachura
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002196:Capillaries / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000098:blood supply*; D007511:Ischemia / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D015427:Reperfusion Injury / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor