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Transgenic null mice were used to test the hypothesis that water channel aquaporin-4 (AQP4) is involved in colon water transport and fecal dehydration. AQP4 was immunolocalized to the basolateral membrane of colonic surface epithelium of wild-type (+/+) mice and was absent in AQP4 null (−/−) mice. The transepithelial osmotic water permeability coefficient (P _f) of in vivo perfused colon of +/+ mice, measured using the volume marker ¹⁴C-labeled polyethylene glycol, was 0.016 ± 0.002 cm/s. P _f of proximal colon was greater than that of distal colon (0.020 ± 0.004 vs. 0.009 ± 0.003 cm/s, P < 0.01).P _f was significantly lower in −/− mice when measured in full-length colon (0.009 ± 0.002 cm/s, P< 0.05) and proximal colon (0.013 ± 0.002 cm/s, P< 0.05) but not in distal colon. There was no difference in water content of cecal stool from +/+ vs. −/− mice (0.80 ± 0.01 vs. 0.81 ± 0.01), but there was a slightly higher water …