Villus tip microcirculation in the rat duodenum.

Duodenal microvascular perfusion was measured in anaesthetized rats both as erythrocyte velocity (rcv) in capillaries in the tip of duodenal villi and by laser-Doppler flowmetry (LDF). Rcv increased transiently by about 40% during the first 5 min of luminal exposure to 10 mM (NaCl to isotonicity) hydrochloric acid, while LDF measurements only showed a transient increase of about 7%, followed by a prolonged reduction by about 11%. Since the LDF signal is a measure not only of villus microcirculation but also of blood flow in the deeper layers, our results may suggest that blood flow is transiently redistributed towards the villi from deeper layers. Hypovolaemia (bleeding by approximately 10% of the blood volume) reduced rcv in the capillaries by 63% during the first 5 min of hypotension, but reduced LDF only by about 12%, a discrepancy which suggests a shift in blood flow from the tip to deeper layers. The experiments were performed under atmospheric oxygen tension, but rcv in the villus capillaries exposed to abdominal PO2 (approximately 45 mmHg) did not differ significantly from the values obtained under the atmospheric oxygen condition, either in the resting situation or during hypotension. In conclusion, we have developed an animal model in which red cell velocity in the tip of the duodenal villi can be studied for several hours and in which alkaline secretion from the duodenum is similar to previously reported levels. Our results show that the villus tip microcirculation in the duodenum may respond differently from that of deeper layers of the duodenal wall.