Abstract
The amount of colonic substance P and substance P-receptors is increased in ulcerative colitis, which may denote that substance-P is involved as a neurogenic mediator in the inflammatory process of ulcerative colitis. We studied the anatomical distribution of elevated colonic substance P in ulcerative colitis and assessed morphometrically wheter the changes in substance P correlate with alterations in colonic innervation. Full-thickness specimens of colonic wall were obtained from normal human colons (N=9) and the most and least affected regions of ulcerative colitis colons (N=10) and immunostained for substance P. Substance P immunoreactivity index was calculated by multiplying each intensity value by the number of pixels exhibiting this intensity value. The numbers of substance P-immunoreactive nerve fibers in the lamina propria were markedly increased, and their fluorescence intensity was enhanced in ulcerative colitis. The longitudinal muscle layer contained substance P-immunoreactive nerve fibers in ulcerative colitis, but not in the controls. The substance P-immunoreactive index (=number×intensity of nerve fibers) was 3.42±1.49 in controls, 21.19±7.79 in mild ulcerative colitis regions (P<0.05), and 29.68±9.81 in severe ulcerative colitis regions (P<0.01). Increase in the number of substance P nerve fibers is in accordance with the hypothesis that substance P contributes to neurogenic mediation of inflammation in ulcerative colitis.
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This study has been supported financially by grants from Sigrid Juselius Foundation, Medical Research Council of the Academy of Finland, University of Helsinki, and The Finnish Medical Society Duodecim.
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Keränen, U., Kiviluoto, T., Järvinen, H. et al. Changes in substance P-immunoreactive innervation of human colon associated with ulcerative colitis. Digest Dis Sci 40, 2250–2258 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02209015
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02209015