Level of mRNA expression of calprotectin, proinflammatory cytokines, and gut permeability as well as level of expression of tight-junction (TJ) proteins in sodium-dependent multivitamin transporter (SMVT)-inducible, conditional knockout (icKO) mice and their control littermates. A: level of mRNA expression of calprotectin [s100a8 (i) and s100a9 (ii)] in the cecum of SMVT-icKO mice and their control littermates. B: level of mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β (i), TNF-α (ii), IFN-γ (iii), and IL-6 (iv) in the cecum of SMVT-icKO mice and their control littermates. C: reduced gut permeability in the intestine of SMVT-icKO compared with control littermates determined with FITC-dextran assay. D: effect of intestinal SMVT-icKO on the level of TJ protein expression in the large intestine. The bar diagram shows relative protein expression of claudin-2 (i) and zonula occludens (ZO)-1 (ii) in the SMVT-icKO mice and their sex-matched control littermates. Data are presented as box and dot-whisker plots from four separate sets of mice, and statistical significance (*P < 0.05) is calculated with the Mann-Whitney test.