Elective abdominal operations alter the free amino acid content of the human intestinal mucosa
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B Ahlman1, K Andersson, O Ljungqvist
1Department of Surgery, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
Objective:
To assess the impact of a standard moderately severe surgical operation on the mucosal amino acid content of the duodenum and the colon.
Design:
Open study.
Setting:
University hospital, Sweden.
Subjects:
Nine patients who were to undergo elective open cholecystectomy.
Interventions:
Endoscopically obtained biopsy specimens from the intestinal mucosa.
Main Outcome Measures:
Changes in the content of free amino acids in the duodenum and colon at three days postoperatively.
Results:
The concentration of glutamine in the duodenum increased by 27% and that of glutamic acid by 34% after operation, whereas their content in colon remained unaltered. The concentration of branched chain amino acids increased by 26% in the duodenal mucosa after operation and by 24% in the colonic mucosa. The total concentration of amino acids (excluding taurine) increased by 9% in the duodenum, but remained unaltered in the colon.
Conclusion:
This study shows characteristic and consistent alterations in the free amino acid content of the intestinal tract after a moderately severe operation.