Enteric neural regulation of barrier function in the intestine

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The single layer of epithelial cells that line the gastrointestinal (GI) tract is an essential barrier between the external environment and the inside of the body. The ability to regulate permeability through this barrier resides at the level of the apical junctional complex. The apical junctional complex consists of the tight and adherence junctions of the epithelium and is one of two barriers to movement through the intestinal epithelium; the other being a secretory barrier. The secretory barrier includes antimicrobial peptides, mucus and fluid. Considerable work has revealed that secretion is regulated by neural mechanisms that integrate barrier function with digestive processes in the gut. By comparison, far less is known about the neural control of the apical junctional complex on the intestine. We aim to address this significant gap in our knowledge by testing the general hypothesis that the innervation of the intestine regulates epithelial barrier function by altering the expression and localization of tight junction proteins.