Abstract:Objective To investigate whether oat β-glucan (Oglu) can provide protection for jejunum injury with sepsis. Methods Fifty SD rats were randomly divided into a normal control group (n = 10), a sepsis group (n = 20) and an Oglu group (n = 20). Septic models in the sepsis group and the Oglu group were induced with cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). The jejunum injury was assessed by pathology. And the inflammatory cytokines IL-6, TNF-α and procalcitonin were detected by ELISA. The expressions of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1α), β-catenin, T-cell factor (TCF-4) and matrix metalloproteinase 13 (MMP-13) were detected by PCR and Western blot. Results Oglu relieved sepsis-induced jejunum injury, and reduced the levels of IL-6, TNF-α and procalcitonin in the sepsis group (P < 0.05). The expression of HIF-1α in the jejunum of the Oglu group was higher than that of the normal control group and the sepsis group (P < 0.05), but there was no significant difference between the latter two groups (P > 0.05). The expressions of β-catenin, TCF-4 and MMP-13 in the Oglu group was significantly lower than that in the sepsis group (P < 0.05). Conclusions Oat β-glucan exerts protective effect on jejunum in septic rats, which is related to the regulation of HIF-1α and Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway and the reduction of oxidative stress and inflammatory response during sepsis.