Abstract
Vanillin consumption is common within the global population, often as a flavoring agent. Many vanillin-containing drinks claim a soothing effect on the body as a whole with some reports on their benefit in reducing gastrointestinal (GI) upset. In this study, vanillin was investigated for its ability to reduce rat ileal smooth muscle contractility induced by acetylcholine (Ach) and potassium chloride (KCl). A section of rat ileum was suspended in an organ bath containing Tyrode’s solution. The tissue was stimulated using Ach or KCl and kept under 1 g tension at 37°C while continuously gassing with oxygen. Ileal smooth muscle contractility was studied in the absence and presence of vanillin. The results illustrated that vanillin (1.4e-6 and 2.2e-6 M) hindered ileal smooth muscle contractility induced by both Ach and KCl. Vanillin (1.4e-6 and 2.2e-6 M) also caused a rightward shift of the Ach concentration response curve and brought about a decrease (21.6 and 38.3%, respectively) in the maximum response. It also produced a rightward shift in the KCl dose response curve but without affecting the maximum response. These results indicate that vanillin counteracts Ach and KCl induced smooth muscle contractility in rat ileum. The results also suggest that vanillin prevented Ach induced contractility via non competitive inhibition kinetics. The reduction in KCl induced contractility also indicates that vanillin, at least partially, conveyed its effect through acting on ileal smooth muscle calcium channels. Key words: Vanillin, acetylcholine, KCl, rat Ileum, smooth muscle contraction.
Highlights
Gastro intestinal (GI) motility results from complex interaction between the enteric nervous system, hormones and ileal smooth muscles (Andersson and Hedlund, 2002)
The results clearly showed that vanillin counteracted ileal smooth muscle contractility induced by both Ach and KCl, and indicated that vanillin could influence GI motility
Isovanillin may possess similar GI effects, vanillin remains the molecule of interest because of its wide use as a flavouring agent
Summary
Gastro intestinal (GI) motility results from complex interaction between the enteric nervous system, hormones and ileal smooth muscles (Andersson and Hedlund, 2002). Any imbalance between the interplay of these contributors will result in a loss of the normal physiologic rhythm, and in many cases, manifest clinically as a GI symptom (Kim et al, 2008) These symptoms include diarrhea, constipation, GI spasms and general GI discomfort (Samuels, 2009). There are many remedies capable of relieving this pain, with the majority achieving their effect through inhibiting smooth muscle contractility (Kim et al., 2008; Samuels, 2009). One approach in determining whether plant extracts or chemical agents possess antispasmodic activity is to examine their effect on isolated ileal smooth muscle tissue. The lower hook was fixed at the bottom of the tissue bath and the upper one was connected to an isotonic transducer to measure forced smooth muscle contraction from base line Results were analyzed using non linear regression (curve fit) with an extra sum-of squares F test comparison method for logEC50 and hillslope values using GraphPad Prism 5 ® software
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