Pure pancreatic juice from patients with chronic pancreatitis has an impaired antibacterial activity.

CONCLUSION

These data show that pure pancreatic juice of AICP patients has a markedly defective antibacterial activity. This finding might be of potential clinical interest in the understanding of the pathophysiology of the disease.

BACKGROUND

The aim of the present study was to test the antibacterial activity of pure pancreatic juice in patients with chronic pancreatitis.

METHODS

The study group consisted of ten patients with ethanol-induced chronic pancreatitis (AICP) and seven control patients free of pancreatic disease. All subjects had recently undergone a secretin-pancreozymin pancreatic function test. After an overnight fast, through a side-viewing endoscope, selective pancreatic duct cannulation was performed. After secretin stimulation, pure pancreatic juice was obtained. Three fractions of different molecular weights were separated. Samples were incubated with 1-mL suspension of 10(5) Escherichia coli ATCC 25,922, and log10 of colony-forming units were counted. Experiments were repeated by grading pancreatic juice concentration, pH of the medium, and inoculum size.

RESULTS

No significant change of pH of pure pancreatic juice appeared between AICP and controls. Starting from 6-h observation, pure pancreatic juice of AICP patients showed a significant bacterial colonization vs controls (p < 0.01). A direct correlation appeared between bacterial colonization and either pH and dilution of pancreatic juice (p < 0.001). Antibacterial activity was independent of inoculum size, enzymatic activation or inhibition, and heat treatment. The fraction with 1000-10,000 molecular weight was the one endowed with antibacterial activity.