The Role Of Central Nervous System On The Regulation Of Visceral Sensations In Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Background/Aims: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional bowel disease, its etiology and physiopathological mechanism are less understood and lack of very effective therapeutic agents. Patients' quality of life are affected heavily, and a large quantity of medical resources is occupied unnecessarily. IBS is therefore a challenge for doctors and medical researchers. In the past few decades, under the guidelines of physicopsychosocial mode in medicine, IBS has been regard as a psychophysical disease, and attention has been drawn on the role of central nervous system (CNS) on the regulation of visceral sensations. However, our knowledge of the complex neural and neurohumoral communication systems between brain and gut is rudimentary and has proved to be difficult in human studies. The present study was aimed at establishing a psychological stress model in rats, to further investigate the role of CNS on the regulation of visceral sensation, and to identify the impact of psychological factors on bowel function.Materials & Methods: Using stress box and smell of camphor as conditioned stimuli, limbs straining and rectal-distention as non-conditional stimuli, a conditioned strained -rectal distention psychological stress animal model in Wistar rats was established to mimic IBS. Employing this model, we studied the effect of sodium cromoglycate (a mast cell stabilizator, given intraperitoneally) and α-helical-CRF-(19-41) (antagonist of CRF, administered intracerebroventricularly) on visceral sensation. The changes of visceral sensation was monitored by the changes of electric activity of abdominal muscle. The number and activity of mast cells in the...