The predominant cell in the small intestine is the enterocyte, a highly specialized absorptive cell. The apical or luminal side of each enterocyte consists of about 3,000 tiny microvilli. This provides another layer of minute projections inside the intestinal tube (known as the lumen) that enhance absorption of the contents of the gastrointestinal tract. The microvillous surface of the enterocy...

Antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibodies (ANCA) were detected in patients with autoimmune and vascular diseases such as Wegener's granulomatosis, polyarteritis nodosa and systemic lupus erythematosus. Indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) technique was employed to detect these autoantibodies. By this method, two general patterns of ANCA were seen: a cytoplasmic (cANCA) and a perinuclear form ...

For the evaluation of autoantibodies in Pemphigus vulgaris (PV), an indirect ELISA assay was developed by using a semi-purified human epidermal skin extracted with approximately a molecular weight (M.W.) of 130-160 kDa. The evaluation of Pemphigus IgG, IgM and IgA autoantibodies in 75 patients and 50 control sera indicated that this indirect ELISA assay was a useful method for the detection of ...

By means of a recently developed non-invasive ex vivo minimal model based on the interaction of the human enterocyte-like HT29 cell line and fecal slurries, we explored the enterocyte-associated microbiome of 21 Hadza hunter-gatherers and nine urban living Italians. Though reductionist, this model allows inferring the microbiota structural and functional arrangement as it interacts with enteroc...

Enterocyte apoptosis induced by lipid emulsions is a key cause of intestinal atrophy under total parenteral nutrition (TPN) support, and our previous work demonstrated that olive oil lipid emulsion (OOLE) could induce enterocyte apoptosis via CUGBP, Elav-like family member 1 (CELF1)/ apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) pathway. As TPN-associated complications are partially related to choline defici...

Our objective was to determine if exogenous insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) augments the adaptive growth response to mid small bowel resection in association with changes in enterocyte kinetics. We determined structural adaptation and concomitant changes in enterocyte proliferation, apoptosis, and migration of the jejunum in growing, parenterally fed rats after mid small bowel resection or...

Adaptation following small bowel resection (SBR) signals enterocyte proliferation and apoptosis. Because p53-induced p21 waf1/cip1 may be important for apoptosis in many cells, we hypothesized that these genes are required for increased enterocyte apoptosis during adaptation. Male C57BL/6 (wild-type) or p53-null mice underwent 50% proximal SBR or sham operation (bowel transection-reanastomosis)...

The proliferation of intestinal stem cells (ISCs) and differentiation of enteroblasts to form mature enteroendocrine cells and enterocytes in the Drosophila intestinal epithelium must be tightly regulated to maintain homeostasis. We show that genetic modulation of CyclinD/Cdk4 activity or mTOR-dependent signalling cell-autonomously regulates enterocyte growth, which influences ISC proliferation...

Recent studies have revealed that TAK1 kinase is an essential intermediate in several innate immune signaling pathways. In this study, we investigated the role of TAK1 signaling in maintaining intestinal homeostasis by generating enterocyte-specific constitutive and inducible gene-deleted TAK1 mice. We found that enterocyte-specific constitutive TAK1-deleted mice spontaneously developed intesti...

Both ritonavir and indinavir were readily metabolized by human intestinal microsomes. Comparison of the patterns of metabolites in incubations with enterocyte microsomes and expressed cytochrome P450 (CYP) isozymes and immunoinhibition and chemical inhibition studies showed the essential role of the CYP3A subfamily in the metabolism of both protease inhibitors by the small intestine. Ritonavir ...