MUCOSAL NEUROENDOCRINE CELL ABNORMALITIES IN THE COLON OF PATIENTS WITH HIRSCHSPRUNGS-DISEASE

We studied the distribution of mucosal neuroendocrine (NE) cells in the colon from 13 patients with Hirschsprung's disease (HD) and from 8 controls. Immunohistochemical studies were carried out using monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies against chromogranin A and synaptophysin (general markers of NE cells), 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) (a marker of amine), peptide YY (PYY), and somatostatin (markers of neuropeptides). Chromogranin A immunoreactive cells were significantly increased in the aganglionic bowel compared with ganglionic bowel and controls (P < .05). There was an increase in the number of synaptophysin immunoreactive cells in the aganglionic bowel compared with ganglionic bowel and controls but the results were not statistically significant. 5-HT immunoreactive cells were also significantly increased in the aganglionic bowel compared with ganglionic bowel and controls (P < .05). The immunostaining for PYY demonstrated abundance of this NE cell type in the aganglionic bowel and this was highly significant compared with ganglionic bowel and controls (P < .001). There was a significant increase in somatostatin immunoreactive cells in the aganglionic bowel compared with ganglionic bowel (P < .01). The increase in neuroendocrine cells was found over the entire length of the aganglionic segment in rectosigmoid HD as well as in long-segment HD. These results demonstrating the increased levels of NE cells in the mucosa of aganglionic colon suggest that the NE cells may have a role in regulating the sustained contraction of the aganglionic intestine in HD. © 1992.