Plasma lipopolysaccharide level and enterocyte brush border enzymes in gnotobiotic piglets infected with Salmonella typhimurium

Abstract

Gnotobiotic piglets were orally infected either with the virulent LT2 strain or the non-pathogenic SF1591 rough mutant of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium. They were sacrificed 6 or 24 h after the infection. All piglets infected for 24 h developed systemic infection with an increase of plasma lipopolysaccharide. Infection with the virulent strain caused a significant decrease (P < 0.001) of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) activity in the enterocyte brush border of both the jejunum and ileum, infection with the rough mutant caused a decrease of GGT activity in the ileum only. The activities of other brush border enzymes (lactase, sucrase, glucoamylase, alkaline phosphatase and dipeptidylpeptidase IV) did not change significantly after infection.

Keywords

• swine
• gnotobiotic piglet
• salmonella typhimurium