The Effect of Pollen on the Structure of the Small Intestine in Rats after an Experimental Addition in Diet

Abstract

In this study, the effects of  pollen addition in diet on the small intestine structure in rats were investigated. The microscopic changes in the small intestine after administration of the pollen addition were evaluated. The experimental animals were divided into two experimental and one control group of ten rats (5 males and 5 females). Experimental group A was given the addition of pollen in concentration of 0.2 % and group B was fed diet containing 0.5 % of pollen for 90 days. Using quantitative morphometrical methods, we have found statistically significant increase in the relative volume of epithelial tissue (P < 0.0001) and decrease in the mucosa tissue volume (P < 0.0001) of the small intestine in experimental group B as compared to control. The results of our work show that the addition of pollen in diet had demonstrable concentration-dependent effects on the mucosa of small intestine and could have a positive impact on improving the absorptive mucosal surface and therefore could affect the usability for the received nutrients in food.