The effect of prebiotics on intestinal mucosal barrier protein occludin in model rats acutely exposed to high altitude

Objective To investigate the effect of prebiotics on the expression of occludin intestinal mucosal barrier in model rats acutely exposed to high altitude.Method Forty-eight rat models in radical plateau hypoxia environment were established(3 848 m).These rats were randomly divided into hypoxia control group(n=24) and prebiotics group(n=24),then further randomly divided into six groups(n=8) by 2 d,4 d and 6 d time points,respectively.The expression of occludin protein in intestinal mucosa was analyzed by immunohistochemistry method,and Tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) and interleukin-10(IL-10) in ileum tissue were determined with ELISA.Result At each time point,occludin protein in all hypoxia control groups were significantly lower than in prebiotics group(P0.01),while TNF-α was significantly increased and serum IL-10 was remarkably reduced(P0.05).Conclusion Prebiotics has the effect of maintaining the integrity of epithelial cells by increasing occludin protein expression and reducing the damage of intestinal mucosal barrier caused by hypoxia.