Faculty Collaboration Database

Efferent vagal nerve stimulation attenuates gut barrier injury after burn: modulation of intestinal occludin expression. J Trauma 2010 Jun;68(6):1349-54; discussion 1354-6

Date

06/12/2010

Pubmed ID

20539179

Pubmed Central ID

PMC4251593

DOI

10.1097/TA.0b013e3181dccea0

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-77953805573 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   74 Citations

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Severe injury can cause intestinal permeability through decreased expression of tight junction proteins, resulting in systemic inflammation. Activation of the parasympathetic nervous system after shock through vagal nerve stimulation is known to have potent anti-inflammatory effects; however, its effects on modulating intestinal barrier function are not fully understood. We postulated that vagal nerve stimulation improves intestinal barrier integrity after severe burn through an efferent signaling pathway, and is associated with improved expression and localization of the intestinal tight junction protein occludin.

METHODS: Male balb/c mice underwent right cervical vagal nerve stimulation for 10 minutes immediately before 30% total body surface area, full-thickness steam burn. In a separate arm, animals underwent abdominal vagotomy at the gastroesophageal junction before vagal nerve stimulation and burn. Intestinal barrier injury was assessed by permeability to 4 kDa FITC-dextran, histology, and changes in occludin expression using immunoblotting and confocal microscopy.

RESULTS: Cervical vagal nerve stimulation decreased burn-induced intestinal permeability to FITC-dextran, returning intestinal permeability to sham levels. Vagal nerve stimulation before burn also improved gut histology and prevented burn-induced changes in occludin protein expression and localization. Abdominal vagotomy abrogated the protective effects of cervical vagal nerve stimulation before burn, resulting in gut permeability, histology, and occludin protein expression similar to burn alone.

CONCLUSION: Vagal nerve stimulation performed before injury improves intestinal barrier integrity after severe burn through an efferent signaling pathway and is associated with improved tight junction protein expression.

Author List

Costantini TW, Bansal V, Peterson CY, Loomis WH, Putnam JG, Rankin F, Wolf P, Eliceiri BP, Baird A, Coimbra R

Author

Carrie Peterson MD, MS, FACS, FASCRS Associate Professor in the Surgery department at Medical College of Wisconsin

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Analysis of Variance
Animals
Burns
Dextrans
Immunoblotting
Intestinal Mucosa
Intestines
Male
Membrane Proteins
Mice
Mice, Inbred BALB C
Microscopy, Confocal
Occludin
Permeability
Signal Transduction
Tight Junctions
Vagus Nerve Stimulation