Center for Pharmaceutical Studies, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal The School of Pharmacy, University of London, London, UK.
J Pharm Pharmacol. 2012 Feb;64(2):218-27. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-7158.2011.01399.x. Epub 2011 Nov 18.
The objective of this study was to systematically assess the mucus thickness in the gastrointestinal tract of laboratory animals commonly used in preclinical studies.
Mucus thickness was studied post-mortem in the rat, rabbit and pig, using cryosections stained by the modified periodic acid Schiff/Alcian blue method.
The mucus thickness in the fundus region of the stomach was higher in the pig (190.7 ± 80.7 µm) than in the rabbit (155.1 ± 85.8 µm) and the rat (31.3 ± 11.4 µm). However, along the small intestine (ileum), mucus was thicker in the rabbit (147.8 ± 115.6 µm), followed by the pig (53.8 ± 22.1 µm) and the rat (34.1 ± 14.9 µm). This rank order was also observed in the ascending colon.
Inter-species variability in mucus thickness along the gut was demonstrated and suggests that the pig resembles more closely the mucus pattern of humans. This may be highly relevant when preclinical animal models are used in drug absorption studies or in the development of oral mucoadhesive drug delivery systems.
本研究旨在系统评估临床前研究中常用的实验动物胃肠道内的黏液厚度。
采用改良过碘酸雪夫/阿尔辛蓝染色法对大鼠、兔和猪死后的冷冻切片进行黏液厚度研究。
胃底区域的黏液厚度在猪中最高（190.7 ± 80.7 µm），其次是兔（155.1 ± 85.8 µm）和大鼠（31.3 ± 11.4 µm）。然而，在小肠（回肠）中，黏液在兔中最厚（147.8 ± 115.6 µm），其次是猪（53.8 ± 22.1 µm）和大鼠（34.1 ± 14.9 µm）。在升结肠中也观察到了这种等级顺序。
沿胃肠道的黏液厚度存在种间变异性，表明猪更接近人类的黏液模式。当在药物吸收研究或开发口服黏膜黏附药物传递系统中使用临床前动物模型时，这可能具有高度相关性。
