Vaccaro Rosa, Casini Arianna, Severi Carola, Lamazza Antonietta, Pronio Annamaria, Palma Rossella
Department of Anatomical, Histological, Forensic Medicine and Orthopedics Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Department of Translational and Precision Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Diagnostics (Basel). 2023 Jan 5;13(2):204. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics13020204.
Melatonin is a ubiquitous hormone produced not only by the pineal gland but also by other organs and tissues. It is involved in the regulation of several gastrointestinal functions. The main cells responsible for the production and release of extrapineal melatonin are the enterochromaffin (EC) cells that produce serotonin. They are involved in the pathogenesis of neuromotor disorders that characterize functional gastrointestinal disorders and in the pathophysiology of inflammatory intestinal diseases. Our aim was the immunohistochemical highlighting on biopsy samples of normal gastrointestinal mucosa and in ulcerative colitis (UC) of immunoreactive cells for melatonin and serotonin in order to identify any differences in their distribution.
Our prospective case-control study involves the highlighting on human mucosal biopsies of immunoreactive cells for melatonin and serotonin. All patients undergoing colonoscopy + ileoscopy were considered eligible for the study, divided into two groups: 1. patients with active ulcerative colitis (UC); 2. control group consisting of patients undergoing endoscopic examination for colorectal cancer screening.
Twenty-one patients were enrolled. The controls had a higher concentration of EC cells containing 5HT particularly in the rectum ( value ≤ 0.05). In patients with active colitis the expression of 5-HT-iR was greater in all tracts of the colon. The correlation analysis in UC patients shows that a higher expression of 5-HT-iR+ cells corresponds to a lower extension of the disease and a greater severity of the same.
5HT+ cells decreased in the case of UC compared to healthy controls. In the severe disease, there was an increase in the expression of melatonin-secreting cells, probably as a compensatory response to the inflammation and oxidative stress. This increase is negatively correlated with the extent of the disease and positively with the severity of the same.
褪黑素是一种广泛存在的激素，不仅由松果体产生，还可由其他器官和组织产生。它参与多种胃肠功能的调节。负责松果体外褪黑素产生和释放的主要细胞是产生血清素的肠嗜铬（EC）细胞。它们参与功能性胃肠疾病所特有的神经运动障碍的发病机制以及炎症性肠病的病理生理学过程。我们的目的是通过免疫组织化学方法，对正常胃肠黏膜活检样本以及溃疡性结肠炎（UC）中褪黑素和血清素免疫反应性细胞进行显色，以确定它们分布上的差异。
我们的前瞻性病例对照研究包括对人黏膜活检样本中褪黑素和血清素免疫反应性细胞进行显色。所有接受结肠镜检查 + 回肠镜检查的患者均被认为符合研究条件，分为两组：1. 活动性溃疡性结肠炎（UC）患者；2. 由因结直肠癌筛查接受内镜检查的患者组成的对照组。
共纳入21例患者。对照组中含有5-羟色胺（5HT）的EC细胞浓度较高，尤其是在直肠（P值≤0.05）。在活动性结肠炎患者中，结肠各段5-羟色胺免疫反应性（5-HT-iR）的表达均更高。UC患者的相关性分析表明，5-HT-iR+细胞的较高表达对应于疾病较轻的范围和较重的严重程度。
与健康对照组相比，UC患者的5HT+细胞减少。在严重疾病中，分泌褪黑素细胞的表达增加，这可能是对炎症和氧化应激的一种代偿反应。这种增加与疾病范围呈负相关，与疾病严重程度呈正相关。
