Res Vestib Sci.
2009 Jun;8(1):15-22.
Changes in the Gastrointestinal Motility following Unilateral Labyrinthectomy
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Physiology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine and Vestibulocochlear Research Center at Wonkwang University,Iksan, Korea. byungp@wku.ac.kr
- 2Department of Leisure Sports, Wonkwang Health Science College, Iksan, Korea.
- 3Best ENT Clinic, Gwangju, Korea.
Abstract
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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The temporal changes and the role of glutamate receptors in the recovery of vestibulogastrointestinal symptoms following unilateral labyrinthectomy (UL) were investigated in this study. Vestibulogastrointestinal symptoms were evaluated in terms of gastric emptying and intestinal transit.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Expression of the c-Fos protein was observed in the solitary tract nucleus (STN) and rostral ventrolateral medullary nucleus (RVLM). These were measured at 0.5, 2, 6 and 24 h following UL in rats.
RESULTS
Gastric emptying and intestinal transit were significantly decreased for 6 h post UL and recovered to control levels within 24 h. Pretreatment of UL animals with MK-801 significantly increased the gastric emptying and intestinal transit. Bilateral labyrinthectomy significantly decreased the gastric emptying and intestinal transit compared to the intact labyrinthine animals but significantly increased when compared to UL animals. The expression of c-Fos protein was significantly increased in STN and RVLM compared to the control animals for 6 h post UL and recovered to control levels within 24 h. The expression was significantly decreased in animals that were pretreated with MK-801.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that UL decreases the gastrointestinal motility, which recovers to control levels within 24 h post UL. Glutamate plays an important role in the recovery of vestibulogastrointestinal symptoms following UL.
