Is transport of enzymes from food through stomach to blood in intact form possible?

[Tomas Hajkovsky]

Hello,

I cannot find any information/ solid article whether enzymes contained in the food and pills that have been taken perorally can pass through the stomach or intestine cells into the blood circulation. I am mostly interested in transport of hydrolases contained in food/ pills.

 

Can they pass intact through the cells lining digestive system to blood? What are the mechanisms?

 

Thanks!

[fiveworlds]

Yes I remember my lecturer telling me there is a form of pesticide which will pass into the blood stream and never be removed from the blood slowly killing you over the course of 20 something years. Of course it is banned in most countries now.

[Fuzzwood]

And which pesticide are you talking about?

[fiveworlds]

And which pesticide are you talking about?

 

 

I don't remember the exact one but there are a few http://www.chemistry.wustl.edu/~edudev/LabTutorials/Dialysis/Kidneys.htmlfor example DDT

[CharonY]

Yes I remember my lecturer telling me there is a form of pesticide which will pass into the blood stream and never be removed from the blood slowly killing you over the course of 20 something years. Of course it is banned in most countries now.

 

Your lecturer is referring to small molecules which are completely different beasts than proteins (most likely organohalogens or similar bioaccumulative compounds). Typically, proteins will be digested heavily by proteases (or bacterial actions) during the passage. Even if they don't, they have to be taken up actively by intestinal cells (where further degradation may occur). That is a rather rare event, but it is quite possible.

Edited August 17, 2015 by CharonY

[Tomas Hajkovsky]

Thank you for your answers!

[Sorcerer]

Typically, proteins will be digested heavily by proteases (or bacterial actions) during the passage. Even if they don't, they have to be taken up actively by intestinal cells (where further degradation may occur). That is a rather rare event, but it is quite possible.

Foods like beans contain protease inhibitors which could enable more enzymes to survive.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1432-1033.1968.tb00365.x/pdf

[Justin.Frank]

may be little enzymes can entry into blood, but I think most of them cannot because the digestion by proteases in stomach. I think you can label the hydrolases with some isotopes or fluorescent dyes to study this situation.

[CharonY]

The cell barrier is generally the largest inhibitor of movement of compounds into blood. Proteins are very large, membrane impermeable entities and generally require active transport to reach the blood stream, which is generally rather unlikely. However, things are different if the barrier is breached.

[foxy john]

It has been postulated that prions enter the blood stream in this way. Don't have any references though.

[CharonY]

I think it is assumed that they are taken up by lymphoid tissue (mostly Peyer patches, probably assisted by M cells) in the gut and then re-distributed. But there may be newer research out there.