Nuclear scintigraphic assessment of intestinal dysfunction after combined treatment with 9-amino-20(S)-camptothecin (9-AC) and irradiation

Purpose: The camptothecins (CPTs) are potent radiosensitizers of malignant tumors in vivo. The extent of normal tissue damage after combined CPT and radiation treatment is unknown. In this article, a jejunal absorption assay with ^99mTc- pertechnetate (Na[^99mTcO₄]) was used to assess C3H/Kam mice given total body irradiation (TBI) of 4 Gy, 6 Gy, and 8 Gy, 2 mg/kg single intramuscular injection of 9-AC or a combination of 2 mg/kg 9-AC + 4 Gy TBI. We also correlated the absorption data with morphologic changes in the jejunal mucosa.Materials and Methods: (^99mTcO₄)^- absorption from the intestinal lumen into the circulation was studied with dynamic γ-scintigraphy combined with a multichannel analyzer to record the radiometry data in a time-dependent fashion. Jejunal cross sections were scored for the number of cells per villus and the percentage of apoptotic and mitotic cells in the crypt compartment. The jejunal microcolony assay was used to quantify jejunal crypt survival.Results: A dose-dependent decrease in the absorption function was observed 3.5 days following TBI. The mean absorption rate was reduced to 89 ± 16% of control in response to a sublethal 4 Gy TBI and dropped to 47.5 (9.8% in response to 8 Gy TBI. The mean rate of intestinal absorption was delayed by single sublethal 2 mg/kg 9-AC injection to 62 (11% in comparison with control values. The combination of a single 4 Gy TBI with a 9-AC treatment decreased the (^99mTcO₄)^- jejunal absorption in an additive fashion producing absorption lifetime values more than twofold longer than controls. The decrease in (^99mTcO₄)^- absorption at 3.5 days after irradiation, 9-AC treatment or the combination of the two agents correlates with the number of cells per villus and the percentage of apoptotic cells in the crypt compartment.Conclusion: Dynamic enteroscintigraphy with ^99mTc-pertechnetate is a sensitive functional assay for rapid evaluation of radiation and chemotherapy induced intestinal damage. Reduced intestinal absorptive function has a cellular basis and correlates directly with the numbers of cells lost per villus in a treatment-dependent manner. Copyright (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc.