Colostral antibodies absorption in calves. II. Distal small intestine study

The localization of acid phosphatase at distal small intestine and its morphology were studied from birth to intestinal closure from fifteen male dairy calves aged: unsuckled neonatal, three hours after colostrum ingestion and three days old. At birth, the presence of a large vacuole was found and it expanded all over the epithelial cells cytoplasm at distal jejunum and ileum. For colostrum fed calves, ingested material could be observed in the vacuole. The phosphatase acid reaction was detected in the absorptive cells of suckled and unsuckled newborn calves. Calves aged three days old, a new population of non-vacuolated cells and reduced apical endocytic system were found surrounding the villi. Thus, it's suggested that the absorptive epithelium maturation of distal small intestine can be initiated by increasing the enzymatic activity in the absorptive vacuoles, ending by the substitution of fetal cells, by non-differentiated pinocytic cells and resulting in the cessation of maternal antibody transfer.