Protective Effect of Enriched Diet Plus Growth Hormone Administration on Radiation-Induced Intestinal Injury and on Its Evolutionary Pattern in the Rat

Adequate nutritional support can enhance theprotective action of growth hormone in radiation-inducedmucositis. Our aim is to address the evolutionarypattern of radiation injury to the small intestine of rats fed a high-protein diet and treatedwith growth hormone before irradiation. Male Wistar ratswere fed a high-protein diet and killed two, four orseven days after irradiation. Animals were given either growth hormone or saline. Thecombination of growth hormone and high-protein dietreduced mortality, increased mucosal height and cryptproliferation, and reduced apoptosis from day 2 to day7 after irradiation. Bacterial translocation wasincreased in rats fed the high-protein formula.Insulin-like growth factor was reduced by radiation andfurther reduced by the high-protein diet. Thecombination of growth hormone and high-protein dietprotects from the damage caused by radiation to thebowel and accelerates its recovery. This effect does notseem to be mediated through insulin-like growth factor levels.