Abstract: Objective To investigate the protective effects of smilax glabra extract on intestinal barriers in mice with antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Methods Mice were divided into six groups. Amodel of ntibiotic-associated diarrhea mice was induced by ig administration of lincomycin hydrochloride. During the experiment, the incidence of diarrhea and body weight changes of mice in each group were observed, and the colonic contents of mice were collected to culture four floras: Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus. Levels of serum total protein (total protein, TP), albumin and secretory immunoglobulin A (secretory immunoglobulin A, sIgA) were observed. HE staining was used to observe intestinal pathology. Results Levels of STP, albumin, sIgA and numbers of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus were decreased significantly compared with the normal group. At the same time, there were some pathological changes in intestinal histology as shown by the increased number of Escherichia coli and Enterococcus. Smilax glabra could raise the levels of STP, albumin and sIgA in antibiotic-associated diarrhea mice, and improve the injured intestinal histology and disordered intestinal flora by decreasing the number of Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis and increasing the number of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. Conclusions milax glabra can improve antibiotic-related diarrhea by protecting the intestinal barriers.

Key words: smilax glabra extract, antibiotic-associated diarrhea, intestinal barrier, intestinal flora, sIgA