Anatomical and physiological parameters affecting gastrointestinal absorption in humans and rats

Anatomical and physiological parameters of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract dramatically affect the rate and extent of absorption of ingested compounds. These parameters must be considered by nutritionists, pharmacologists and toxicologists when describing or modeling absorption. Likewise, interspecies extrapolation (e.g. from rat to human) requires species-to-species comparison of these parameters. The present paper (1) describes the alimentary canal and the barrier to absorption; (2) relates the major sites of absorption; (3) compares the dimensions and surface areas of human and rat intestinal tracts; (4) discusses motility of the gut and transit times through regions of the alimentary canal; (5) explains how luminal contents are altered by physical, chemical and metabolic processes; and (6) describes the flow of blood and lymph from the GI tract to the systemic circulation, including the enterohepatic circulation. Despite strong morphological similarities between humans and rats at the microscopic level, gross anatomical differences in the relative absorptive surface areas provide a basis for concluding that the human GI tract is capable of absorbing materials faster and to a greater extent than that of the rat. Differences in the environment of the GI lumen of the two species make it possible to infer which substances are more likely to be present in a dissolved/non-ionized state for each species. Taken together, these differences may be of sufficient magnitude to alter the assessment of risks/benefits for a given compound when those risks/benefits are based on interspecies extrapolations.