Taurodeoxycholate and the developing rabbit distal colon: absence of secretory effect.

Failure to absorb bile acids by the ileum leads to fluid secretion by the colon and diarrhea in adults. The infant ileum, however, does not actively transport bile acids. Therefore, we investigated the effect of taurodeoxycholic acid (TDCA) on ion transport in the colon of rabbits 7-10 days old. We mounted distal colon from infant and adult rabbits in modified Ussing chambers and exposed the mucosal or serosal surfaces to TDCA. In the adult, 50 microM TDCA produced an increase in short-circuit current (delta Isc = 1.0 +/- 0.3 mu eq . h-1 . cm-2, P less than 0.05) and Cl secretion. In the infant, the effect was different, Isc was reduced (delta Isc = -1.1 +/- 0.2 mu eq . h-1 . cm-2, P less than 0.01) and ion flux was not altered. Microscopy demonstrated that the infant epithelium was not significantly damaged by exposure to TDCA at these concentrations. The infant colon was, however, capable of a secretory response to a variety of agonists including theophylline, carbachol, bradykinin, serotonin, and 12,13-dibutyryl phorbol ester. The infant rabbit distal colon lacks a secretory response to TDCA during that period when the ileum cannot transport bile acids.