1. An earlier study by our group revealed that the viscosity of faeces from patients with Crohn's disease is significantly lower than that of healthy subjects. This is due to low concentrations of a high-molecular-mass carbohydrate, probably of bacterial origin. The cause of this phenomenon might be the impaired barrier function of the gut mucosa. Low viscosity may allow close contact of intestinal contents (bacterial products and toxins) with the intestinal wall. This could play a role in the maintenance of the disease.2. The first aim of this study was to investigate the high-molecular-mass carbohydrate fraction, responsible for viscosity, in detail. We also tried (in a pilot study) to raise the intestinal viscosity of patients with Crohn's disease with the undegradable food additive hydroxypropylcellulose (E463), in an attempt to alleviate clinical symptoms.3. The high-molecular-mass fraction (>300 kDa) responsible for faecal viscosity was sensitive to lysozyme and contained high levels of muramic acid. It was concluded that this material consisted mainly of peptidoglycan polysaccharides and was consequently of bacterial origin. The muramic acid in material from patients with Crohn's disease was 7.5 (1.5-13.9)%, which was less than in healthy subjects [11.4 (8.5-24.1)%; P=0.0004]. Furthermore, viscosity in material from patients with Crohn's disease was found to be half [14.9 (1.0-33.6) cP] of that found in healthy subjects [35.0 (2.7-90.7) cP; P=0.004].4.A daily dose of 1 g of hydroxypropylcellulose caused an increase in faecal viscosity in patients with Crohn's disease (from 1.4 to 2.3 cP) and in healthy subjects (from 4.9 to 7.5 cP). Faecal consistency improved in patients with Crohn's disease (from watery and loose to formed) and the defecation frequency decreased from 3-4 to about 2 times a day. No changes in defecation patterns were found in healthy subjects.5. These data indicate that the high-molecular-mass fraction that is responsible for faecal viscosity is peptidoglycan. Furthermore, a daily dose of a hydroxypropylcellulose solution to increase the viscosity of the intestinal contents of patients with Crohn's disease might be beneficial. This approach merits further study.
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De bodemvruchtbaarheid in de omgeving Ens gaat zienderogen achteruit met als gevolg afnemende rendementen door lagere opbrengsten en toenemende kwaliteitsproblemen. Zonder maatregelen zal dit leiden tot bedrijfsbeëindigingen en bedrijfsverplaatsingen. Oorzaken van de problematiek hebben vooral te maken met de oorsprong van deze zandgrond, het grondgebruik en vermindering van onderhoud van de grond. Er wordt in kaart gebracht wat de achtergrond is van de problematiek en wat de mogelijkheden zijn om de grondkwaliteit te verbeteren. Naar aanleiding van het onderzoek zijn een aantal proefopstellingen bij de deelnemers aangebracht om de verwachte mogelijkheden tot plantvitaliteit, door middel van betere bodemvruchtbaarheid, te bevestigen.
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