Enterobacteriaceae in the jejunal microflora: prevalence and relationship to biochemical and histological evaluations in healthy Colombian men

When 23 healthy native Southwestern Colombian men were studied to determine the prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae in the jejunal microflora in a sample of thoroughly evaluated tropical inhabitants who were normal by physical examination, chest x-ray, and medical history, 14 of the 23 proved to be Enterobacteriaceae-positive, with counts of 103 to 109 per milliliter of jejunal aspirate. Thirteen had Escherichia coli, and the fourteenth had Klebsiella pneumoniae. Four had a second species of Enterobacteriaceae associated with E. coli: three were K. pneumoniae, and one was Proteus morganii. Laboratory studies routinely done on all subjects disclosed a total of 18 low biochemical values, 17 of which were associated with 12 of the 14 Enterobacteriaceae-positive subjects: six were low in serum cholesterol, four low in serum vitamin B12, four low in d -xylose excretion, and three low in creatinine coefficient; whereas, the Enterobacteriaceae-negative subjects had normal values for all biochemical tests except for serum vitamin B12 in one case. Nitrogen balance means were significantly different for the two groups: 3.39 g for the Enterobacteriaceae-positive subjects and 1.94 g for the Enterobacteriaceae-negative. No relationship was evident when the histology of the jejunal biopsies was compared with the microbiological or laboratory findings. When the 23 subjects were grouped into those (N = 19) with significant microbial recoveries of any type and those (N = 4) without, the data yielded no meaningful relationships.