Immun localization of BECN1 (beclin 1) in the rat small intestine tissue in nutrient starvation

Beclin 1, the mammalian ortholog of yeast Atg6, is a protein that plays a central role in autophagy, a programmed cell survival process which increased upon periods of cellular stress. Starvation stimulates autophagy to maintain cellular homeostasis in eucaryotic organisms. Studies have shown that autophagy related proteins have a major role in intestinal immunity, barrier function and intestinal homeostasis. However, there was no information on the expression of Beclin 1 in rat small intestine tissue in starvation-induced autophagy. In this study, Beclin 1 immune expression was investigated in small intestine tissues of rats which fasted for 12, 24, 36 and 48 hours along with an ad-libitum fed control group. In the study, small intestine tissue samples had collected for immunohistochemistry (IHC) analysis from control and fasting rats, Beclin 1 immune localizations were determined and the results were evaluated semiquantitatively. As a result of the study, it was found that all of the control and fasting groups had positive Beclin 1 immune expressions in the small intestine tissues but there were no significant expression differences between the groups.