Background Ileocolonic luminal pH has been reported to be abnormally low in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients, and one of the causative factors may be reduced epithelial HCO3− secretory rate (JHCO3−). Disturbances in JHCO3− may occur due to inflammation-induced changes in the crypt and villous architecture, or due to the effect of proinflammatory cytokines on epithelial ion transporters. Methods To discriminate between these possibilities, the tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) overexpressing (TNF+/ΔARE) mouse model was chosen, which displays high proinflammatory cytokine levels in both ileum and colon, but develops only mild colonic histopathology and diarrhea. HCO3− secretion, mRNA expression, immunohistochemistry, and fluid absorptive capacity were measured in ileal and mid-colonic mucosa of TNF+/ΔARE and wildtype (WT) (TNF+/+) mice in Ussing chambers, and in anesthetized mice in vivo. Results The high basal JHCO3− observed in WT ileal and mid-colonic mucosa were luminal C1−-dependent and strongly decreased in TNF+/ΔARE mice. Downregulated in adenoma (DRA) mRNA and protein expression was strongly decreased in TNF+/ΔARE ileocolon, whereas cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), Na+/H+ exchanger 3 (NHE3), Na+/HCO3− cotransporter (NBC), and epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) expression was not significantly altered. This indicates that the severe defect in ileocolonic JHCO3− was due to DRA downregulation. Fluid absorption was severely depressed in the ileum but only mildly affected in the mid-distal colon, preventing the development of overt diarrhea. Conclusions Even mild ileocolonic inflammation may result in a decrease of epithelial HCO3− secretion, which may contribute to alterations in surface pH, intestinal flora, and mucus barrier properties.

Dopaminergic deficiency in the SN results in impaired gastric motility, possibly as a result of the enhanced activity of dopamine system and reduced Ach in gastric tissue. The vagus nerve plays an important role in peripheral gastric motility disorder.

Tcap/telethonin encodes a Z-disc protein that plays important roles in sarcomere assembly, sarcomere-membrane interaction and stretch sensing. It remains unclear why mutations in Tcap lead to limb-girdle muscular dystrophy 2G (LGMD2G) in human patients. Here, we cloned tcap in zebrafish and conducted genetic studies. We show that tcap is functionally conserved, as the Tcap protein appears in the sarcomeric Z-disc and reduction of Tcap resulted in muscular dystrophy-like phenotypes including deformed muscle structure and impaired swimming ability. However, the observations that Tcap integrates into the sarcomere at a stage after the Z-disc becomes periodic, and that the sarcomere remains intact in tcap morphants, suggest that defective sarcomere assembly does not contribute to this particular type of muscular dystrophy. Instead, a defective interaction between the sarcomere and plasma membrane was detected, which was further underscored by the disrupted development of the T-tubule system. Pertinent to a potential function in stretch sensor signaling, zebrafish tcap exhibits a variable expression pattern during somitogenesis. The variable expression is inducible by stretch force, and the expression level of Tcap is negatively regulated by integrin-link kinase (ILK), a protein kinase that is involved in stretch sensing signaling. Together, our genetic studies of tcap in zebrafish suggested that pathogenesis in LGMD2G is due to a disruption of sarcomere-T-tubular interaction, but not of sarcomere assembly per se. In addition, our data prompted a novel hypothesis that predicts that the transcription level of Tcap can be regulated by the stretch force to ensure proper sarcomere-membrane interaction in striated muscles.

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