Soybean trypsin inhibitor attenuates ischemic injury to the feline small intestine

Recent evidence suggests that oxygen free radicals are largely responsible for the increased vascular permeability and early mucosal lesions associated with partial intestinal ischemia. It is postulated that oxygen radicals are produced by the reaction of the enzyme xanthine oxidase with hypoxanthine and molecular oxygen. In normal healthy cells, xanthine oxidase exists as a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-reducing dehydrogenase and not the oxygen radical-producing oxidase. In the intestine, dehydrogenase-to-oxidase conversion is nearly complete with less than 1 min of ischemia. Biochemical evidence from the intestine and liver indicate that ischemia-induced conversion of xanthine dehydrogenase to xanthine oxidase can be prevented by administration of protease inhibitors such as soybean trypsin inhibitor. In order to assess the role of proteases in oxygen radical-mediated ischemic injury to the small bowel, quantitative analyses of mucosal lesion development and vascular permeability were performed in autoperfused segments of cat ileum subjected to 1 or 3 h of ischemia and pretreated with 15 mg/kg (i.v.) soybean trypsin inhibitor. One hour of ischemia produced a significant increase in intestinal vascular permeability. The ischemia-induced increase in vascular permeability was significantly attenuated by soybean trypsin inhibitor pretreatment. Three hours of ischemia led to the development of mucosal lesions in untreated animals. Pretreatment with soybean trypsin inhibitor largely prevented the development of the mucosal lesions. The findings of our study are consistent with biochemical evidence that, during ischemia, proteases trigger the conversion of xanthine dehydrogenase to xanthine oxidase and thereby lead to oxygen radical production and subsequent tissue injury.