The role of ingestion in the development of the small intestine in fetal sheep.

Abstract

We have examined the influence of preventing the passage of swallowed fluid on the development of the small intestine during late gestation in fetal sheep. In four fetuses at 90 d of gestation, the oesophagus was ligated and fistulated, causing swallowed fluid to enter the amniotic sac. Tissue was removed from proximal and distal parts of the small intestine for histological analysis at 136 d (term is 147 d). The body weights of the four experimental fetuses were not significantly different from those of fourteen age- and breed-matched fetuses which were used as controls. However, the width of the mucosal layers at both sites in the small intestine was reduced by approximately 25% in the fistulated fetuses. This was largely attributable to a reduction in villus height of approximately 30%. The densities of villi and crypts increased significantly at the proximal and distal sites respectively. These findings indicate that the ingestion of fluid during late gestation plays a role in promoting growth of the mucosal elements of the small intestine. The way in which this occurs is not clear although it may be mediated either by trophic factors present in either amniotic or pulmonary fluid, or by the release of gastrointestinal hormones, such as gastrin, as a result of gut distension.