Induction of eosinophilic enteritis and eosinophilia in rats by vitamin E and selenium deficiency

Eosinophilic enteritis and eosinophilia, in addition to muscular dystrophy and occasionally liver necrosis, were experimentally induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats with a vitamin E- and selenium-deficient diet (basal diet) for 9 weeks. Cecum and ileum were affected more frequently and severely than other segments of the gastrointestinal tract. Eosinophils were multifocally or diffusely distributed in the intestinal wall but were most severe in the muscular layer and in the submucosa. Eosinophils were also present in stomach, liver with massive hepatocellular necrosis, and skeletal muscle with marked myonecrosis. Eosinophilic enteritis and eosinophilia were not observed in rats fed the basal diet supplemented with either vitamin E (100 or 200 ppm) or selenium (0.1 or 1.0 ppm). Eosinophilic enteritis, eosinophilia, and muscular dystrophy regressed when vitamin E- and selenium-deficient rats were subsequently fed either the vitamin E- or selenium-supplemented diet for 4-5 weeks. These findings suggest that vitamin E and selenium deficiency may play a role in the development of a diffuse type of eosinophilic enteritis and eosinophilia.