Cigarette smoking is associated with intestinal barrier dysfunction in the small intestine but not in the large intestine of mice

Aims: To observe the effect of cigarette smoke (CS) on the small bowel and colon in mice and to attempt to explain the potential mechanisms that account for these effects. Methods: Male BALB/c mice age 6–8 weeks were randomly divided into a CS group and a control group (n = 10 per group). CS mice were exposed to CS (five cigarettes each time, four times a day for 5 days a week using Hamburg II smoking machine and CS was diluted with air at a...