[Protective effect of glutamine on microcirculation of the intestine in experimental colitis]

Parenteral glutamine application can stabilize intestinal permeability and mucosal integrity. It is not known whether glutamine influences the microcirculation in the large intestine. This study thus employs intravital microscopy to investigate mucosal microcirculation in the ascending and descending Colon of Sprague-Dawley rats with TNBS colitis. The animals were randomized and treated with either saline solution (placebo) or glutamine (verum). In the severely inflamed descending colon, TNBS colitis involves a significant capillary blood flow reduction that is not improved by glutamine application. Though the ascending colon shows only a mild inflammatory reaction, its microcirculation is likewise significantly reduced. Here glutamine therapy is associated with an increase in capillary blood flow, indicating that it has a protective effect on the microcirculation of the secondarily involved intestinal segment.