The paper reviews the present-day knowledge on the origin, location, morphology, function, and identification of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC). ICC include several types of mesenchymal cells, spindle-shaped or stellate, found within the musculature of the gastrointestinal tract. Some types of ICC act as pacemakers of the intestinal musculature, while others are implicated in the modulation ...

A 44-year-old woman is described with an endocrine tumour arising in the kidney. There were associated abnormalities of small intestinal morphology, motility, and absorptive function. These abnormalities reversed on removal of the tumour. Detailed studies showed that the tumour contained, and was secreting, glucagon. It is postulated that the intestinal abnormalities may have resulted from gluc...

Microencapsulation with hydrocolloids as a modern technique has been used to prolong the survival of probiotics during exposure to harsh conditions. In this study, alginate-Hylon starch microcapsules with genipin cross-linked chitosan and poly-L-lysine coatings were developed to encapsulate four strains of probiotic bacteria, including Lactobacillus casei (ATCC 39392), Bifidobacterium bifidum (...

Microencapsulation with hydrocolloids as a modern technique has been used to prolong the survival of probiotics during exposure to harsh conditions. In this study, alginate-Hylon starch microcapsules with genipin cross-linked chitosan and poly-L-lysine coatings were developed to encapsulate four strains of probiotic bacteria, including Lactobacillus casei (ATCC 39392), Bifidobacterium bifidum (...

The effects of synbiotic supplementation to the Moghani suckling lambs diet were investigated using 18 lambs (initial BW 5-6 kg, age 3±2 day) were divided into 3 groups and fed experimental diets for 90 days. The dietary treatments were: 1) control (lambs were fed with mother’s milk, along with their normal diets), 2) control + 3 g of synbiotic and control and 3) control + 6 g of synbiotic for ...

This study evaluated the effect of a combination of mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS) and microbial phytase (MP) on growth performance, some blood biochemical metabolites, intestinal morphology and cecal microbial population of ROSS 308 broiler chickens from d 0 to 35 of age. A total of 200 one-dayold broiler chickens (mixed sex) were randomly distributed into four treatments with five replicates a...

Cholestasis is associated with systemic accumulation of bile salts and with deficiency of bile in the intestinal lumen. During the past years bile salts have been identified as signaling molecules that regulate lipid, glucose, and energy metabolism. Bile salts have also been shown to activate signaling routes leading to proliferation, apoptosis, or differentiation. It is unclear, however, wheth...