Perfusion Study on Rat Small Intestine Exposed to Cholera Toxin to Observe Absorption of Water and Electrolytes from a Liposome Based Ors

Introduction: Oral Rehydration Therapy (ORT) is the standard clinical intervention for the treatment of dehydration due to diarrhoea. It does not reduce the volume and frequency of duration of diarrhoea. This has prompted searching for improving ORS. One way of improving ORT may be delivering ORS in liposomes, to stimulate faster and more efficient absorption of water and electrolytes from small intestine. Objectives: To increase the small intestinal absorption of water and electrolytes from ORS by perfusion study, incorporating ORS components into liposomes. And to compare the absorption rates of S-ORS, HS-ORS and Lipo-ORS in small intestine after intestinal secretion is stimulated by Cholera Toxin (CT). Methods: Thirty adult male Long Evans rats were selected for the present study. In this experiment, three types of Oral Rehydration Solutions (ORSs); standard ORS (S-ORS), hydrolyzed starch ORS (HS-ORS) and Liposomal ORS (Lipo-ORS) were used for in vivo perfusion, in the normal and CT stimulated small intestines of rats. The study describes the absorption of electrolytes (Na+, K+, Cl-) and water from these three types of ORSs and compared among these substances from each other. Results: By using an in vivo perfusion technique, liposome based ORS was associated with significantly greater Na+, K+, Cland water absorption compared to hydrolyzed starch ORS or standard ORS. It was observed that the difference among absorption rates of water and electrolytes of standard ORS or hydrolyzed starch ORS and liposome based ORS which was significant (P ≤ 0.01). Conclusion: It can be concluded that liposomes enhance net electrolytes absorption from a carbohydrate electrolytes solution in the CT stimulated small intestines than normal small intestine of rat. These findings underscore the further experiment, on rat model which would be 5-Fluorourasil treated mucosal injured intestinal diarrhea by perfusion technique with the help of liposome based electrolyte solution for rehydration.