Increased intestinal production of α-defensins in aged rats with acute pancreatic injury

Acute pancreatitis is a life-threatening situation, frequently associated with uncontrolled local and systemic inflammation, and aging is associated with a worst prognosis. Antimicrobial peptides are ancient molecules that belong to innate immunity, produced by epithelial and immune cells, and are able to trigger a myriad of effector responses. We have hypothesized that antimicrobial peptides could play an important role during serious pancreatic injury. To investigate our hypothesis, α-defensin-5, α-defensin-7 and CRAMP gene expression levels were measured in the intestinal tissue of old and young rats submitted to chemical pancreatic damage. We found significantly higher levels of α-defensin-5 and α-defensin-7, but not CRAMP, in the samples from old mice. This increase was not associated with a worse systemic inflammatory response. We conclude that α-defensins may have a pivotal role during acute pancreatitis and that the elderly develops a more severe local, but not systemic inflammatory process. •Acute pancreatitis is a major health problem worldwide•Antimicrobial peptides are evolutionarily conserved molecules with broad effects on immunity•This study describes augmented mRNA levels of α-defensins and TNFα in the terminal ileum of aged rats submitted to pancreatic injury•Antimicrobial peptides may play a pivotal role in the development of acute pancreatic chemical insult