Improved survival with splenic autotransplantation and fibronectin therapy following endotoxin administration in rats

The risk of overwhelming infections is greatly increased after splenectomy. In this experimental study in rats, we investigated whether the administration of fibronectinrich cryoprecipitate can improve the survival rate of splenectomized autotransplanted rats subjected to an intravenous challenge with endotoxin. Inbred Lewis rats were divided into four groups: A, splenectomy; B, splenectomy + splenic autotransplantation; C, splenectomy, splenic autotransplantation + fibronectin treatment, and D, sham. Five months after surgery, rats were challenged intravenously with Escherichia coli endotoxin. Immunoglobulin (IgG, IgM, IgA), complement and fibronectin levels were measured before surgery and endotoxin challenge, and 48 h after endotoxin challenge. The survival rate of splenectomized rats was not significantly improved by autotransplantation of splenic tissue, but was significantly (p less than 0.05) improved by autotransplantation and fibronectin treatment. The levels of fibronectin, immunoglobulins and/or complements were significantly decreased after endotoxin challenge in control and in autotransplanted fibronectin-treated rats. The survival improvement of autotransplanted rats treated by fibronectin is probably due to increased endotoxin phagocytosis and clearance.