[The role of intestinal permeability in the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis]

By use of low molecular weight polyethlene glycol (PEG400) as tracer, a revised Chedwick method with capillary gas chromatography was used to examine the intestinal permeability in 49 subjects including patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and healthy controls. Recovery percentage, maximal recovery percentage [Rmax(%)] and Rmax(w) were used to find the effect of bowel permeability in the pathogenesis and disease flare up of AS, as well as the role of HLA-B27 for the bowel permeability. The results showed that in AS group, the recovery of first component (242D) was higher and the Rmax(%) was lower than those in the controls. No statistical difference was found with other indexes. The results indicated that bowel permeability is not elevated in AS. The passage of enteral bacteria antigen into the host may not result from the process of nonspecific penetration. We postulate that there may somehow be a process of "active transportation" in the pathogenesis of AS. More studies of the process are necessary to clarify its importance in the early stage of AS.