[Effect of cholera enterotoxin on carbohydrate metabolism of the liver and small intestine mucosa in the rabbit].

Changes in carbohydrate metabolism were studied in the isolated intestinal loops of rabbits during secretory diarrhea, induced by cholera enterotoxin. Glucose synthesis level in the small intestinal mucosa and liver was measured by isotope technique, using L-alanine as a precursor. Intestinal gluconeogenesis, calculated per mg of protein, appeared to be twice higher than in the liver of fasting rabbits. Cholera enterotoxin administration enhanced gluconeogenesis in the liver by 60%, as compared to the control. The rate of glucose synthesis and glucose-6-phosphatase activity in the intestinal mucosa remained unchanged, whereas glucose-6-phosphatase in the liver was slightly inhibited. It is suggested that gluconeogenesis in the liver supplies glucose as a convenient energy source for the secretory process induced by cholera enterotoxin in the rabbit small intestine.