Review
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2003. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Nov 15, 2003; 9(11): 2385-2389
Published online Nov 15, 2003. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v9.i11.2385
Gut in diseases: Physiological elements and their clinical significance
Lian-An Ding, Jie-Shou Li
Lian-An Ding, Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266003, Shandong Province, China
Jie-Shou Li, Institute of General Surgery, Clinical Medical College of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210002, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: All authors contributed equally to the work.
Correspondence to: Lian-An Ding, Male, Associate Professor of Medical School, Qingdao University, 16 Jiangsu Road, Qingdao 266003, Shandong Province, China. dlahaolq@hotmail.com
Telephone: +86-532-5646006 Fax: +86-532-2911840
Received: March 5, 2003
Revised: May 25, 2003
Accepted: June 2, 2003
Published online: November 15, 2003
Abstract

The intestinal barrier function of GI tract is very important in the body except for the function of digestion and absorption. The functional status of gut barrier basically reflects the stress severity when body suffers from trauma and various stimulations. Many harmful factors such as drugs, illnesses, trauma and burns can damage the gut barrier, which can lead to the barrier dysfunction and bacterial/endotoxin translocation. The paper discusses and reviews the concepts, anatomy, pathophysiology of gut barrier and its clinical relations.

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