The gastrointestinal tract may be viewed as an ecologic system in which a balance between the host and bacterial flora exists. Two major host components appear to be involved in maintaining this balance. The first is a non-specific structural barrier provided by the epithelial layer of the gastrointestinal mucosae. The second component involves functional immunological elements found in the mucosal and submucosal compartments, e.g., gut associated lymphoid tissue. When gut integrity is disrupted by invasive pathogens or by trauma, a myriad of pro-inflammatory mediators are released from cells in the gut wall that exert actions in the tissue or gut lumen. One of these mediators is lactoferrin, an iron binding protein found in high concentration in most exocrine secretions in humans. Despite many controversial reports on its physiological role, evidence is emerging that lactoferrin plays an important proposal is intended to explore lactoferrin's ability to attenuate the generalized state of hyperactivity and preserve intestinal structure and functions during LPS-induced endotoxemia.
Thesaurus Terms: antisepsis, bacterial disease, host organism interaction, inflammation, lactoferrin, mucosal immunity, protein structure /function bovine serum albumin, drug screening /evaluation, endotoxin, gastric mucosa, gut associated lymphoid tissue, intravenous administration, lipopolysaccharide, oral administration Escherichia coli, laboratory mouse
