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The effects of probiotics, administered with different diets, i.e., unhydrolyzed or hydrolyzed dietary antigens, on macromolecular degradation in the gut mucosa were studied. Rat pups were divided into five feeding groups at the age of 14 d. In addition to maternal milk, the milk group was gavaged daily with cows' milk and the hydrolysate group with extensively hydrolyzed whey formula, while controls received sterile saline. In addition to these diets, the milk-GG group and the hydrolysate-GG group were given probiotic bacteria, Lactobacillus GG ATCC 53103 (10(10) colony-forming units per day). At 21 d, the absorption of macromolecules, horseradish peroxidase and beta-lactoglobulin across patch-free jejunal segments was studied in Ussing chambers. The degree of macromolecular degradation was studied by means of HPLC gel filtration. The absorption rate of intact horseradish peroxidase differed among the feeding groups (P = 0.038). This was due to the high median (interquartile range) absorption of intact horseradish peroxidase (ng x h-1 x cm-2) in the milk group [255 (14-1332)] and supplementation with L. GG in the milk-GG group [35 (8-233)] restoring the status to the control level [22 (0-116)]. A parallel effect was seen in the hydrolysate group [100 (9-236)] vs. the hydrolysate-GG group [1 (0- 13)]. A gel filtration study confirmed that larger molecules were absorbed across the mucosa in the milk group compared to the other groups. The absorption of degraded horseradish peroxidase differed between the feeding groups (P = 0. 005). L. GG had a distinct effect when administered with unhydrolyzed, native protein vs. hydrolyzed protein: it increased absorption of degraded horseradish peroxidase in the milk-GG group [7310 (4763-8228)] vs. the milk group [3726 (2423-5915)], while reducing it in the hydrolysate-GG group [2051 (1463-2815)] vs. the hydrolysate group [4573 (3759-9620)]. Our results showed that probiotics not only restore aberrant macromolecular transport, but they also have a specific effect on mucosal degradation depending on dietary antigen: adjuvant-like properties (unhydrolyzed antigen) and immunosuppressive-like properties (hydrolyzed antigen). The antigenicity of the diet therefore should be taken into consideration, when introducing novel probiotic functional foods for the management of gastrointestinal disorders.

Few studies have been performed to investigate the characteristics of native Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP). We derived 5.85 g of native moose BMP from 102 kg of fresh moose bone and performed chromatographic studies to characterise its structure. We found the BMP molecule to have a molecular weight of 11-700 kDa. To investigate the ideal local delivery system for BMP we used porous discs as a carrier. These were implanted into 132 mice. The volume of new bone formed was evaluated by means of histological specimens, radiographs and isotope studies. The best results were obtained by implanting porous discs (coral and ceramic) with type IV collagen and BMP. We suggest that this is the best delivery system for future experiments regarding the acton of BMP.

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Xenograft is considered an alternative material for bone transplantation, but its bone healing capacity is inferior compared to that of autografts and allografts. Here, we tested whether bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) addition enhances the suitability of demineralized xenogeneic bovine bone for bone grafting in dogs, and whether xenogeneic bone is a suitable carrier material for BMPs. The capacity of demineralized bovine bone implants, with and without native partially purified bovine BMP, to heal a 2-cm ulnar defect was determined in six dogs over a follow-up time of 20 weeks. No instances of bone union were seen, but there was slightly more bone formation in the xenografts with BMP, though the difference was not statistically significant. The ulnas treated with an implant with BMP were also mechanically stronger, but the difference was not significant. Computed tomography scans showed no differences in the implant area in bone density, bone mineral content, or bone cross-sectional area. It is concluded that native, partially purified BMP does not sufficiently improve the suitability of bovine demineralized xenografts as a bone substitute material for dog. Demineralized xenogeneic bone does not seem to be a feasible carrier material for BMP.

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