Seth R. Hootman

Glucose-specific regulation of aldose reductase in capan-1 human pancreatic duct cells In vitro.

Impaired pancreatic duct secretion is frequently observed in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), although the cellular mechanism(s) of dysfunction remains unknown. Studies in other tissues have suggested that a hyperglycemia-induced decrease in Na, K-ATPase activity could contribute to the metabolic complications of IDDM and that increased polyol metabolism is involved in this response. The present studies examined the effects of glucose on Na, K-ATPase activity and on expression and activity of aldose reductase (AR), a primary enzyme of polyol metabolism, in Capan-1 human pancreatic duct cells. Increasing medium glucose from 5.5 to 22 mM caused a 29% decrease in Na,K-ATPase activity. The decrease was corrected by 100 microM sorbinil, a specific AR inhibitor. Increasing glucose from 5.5 to 110 mM also resulted in concentration-dependent increases in AR mRNA and enzyme activity that could be resolved into two components, one that was glucose specific and observed at pathophysiological concentrations (< 55 mM) and a second that was osmotically induced at high concentrations (> 55 mM) and which was not glucose specific. The present study demonstrates that pathophysiological levels of glucose specifically activate polyol metabolism with a consequent decrease in Na,K-ATPase activity in pancreatic duct epithelial cells, and that this response to hyperglycemia could contribute to decreased pancreatic secretion observed in IDDM. This is the first report of AR regulation in the pancreatic duct epithelium.

Secretagogue effects on intracellular calcium in pancreatic duct cells

Regulation of intracellular free calcium ([Ca2+]i) in single epithelial duct cells of isolated rat and guinea pig pancreatic interlobular ducts by secretin, carbachol and cholecystokinin was studied by microspectrofluorometry using the Ca2+-sensitive, fluorescent probe Fura-2. Rat and guinea pig duct cells exhibited mean resting [Ca2+]i of 84 nM and 61 nM, respectively, which increased by 50%–100% in response to carbachol stimulation, thus demonstrating the presence of physiologically responsive cholinergic receptors in pancreatic ducts of both species. The carbachol-induced increase in [Ca2+]i involved both mobilization of Ca2+ from intracellular stores and stimulation of influx of extracellular Ca2+. In contrast, neither cholecystokinin nor secretin showed reproducible or sizeable increses in [Ca2+]i. Both rat and guinea pig duct cells showed considerable resting Ca2+ permeability. Lowering or raising the extracellular [Ca2+]i led, respectively, to a decrease or increase in the resting [Ca2+]i. Application of Mn2+ resulted in a quenching of the fluorescence signal indicating its entry into the cell. The resting Ca2+ and Mn2+ permeability could be blocked by La3+ suggesting that it is mediated by a Ca2+ channel.

Overview of Pancreatic Duct Physiology and Pathophysiology

The epithelium of the excretory duct system of the exocrine pancreas secretes bicarbonate ions and mucins. Epithelial cells of the duct system also constitute primary sites of dysfunction in cystic fibrosis, pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. The present work provides an overview of the current state of understanding of the physiology and pathophysiology of the pancreatic duct system and suggests approaches that will provide continued progress in exploration of the basic physiological processes operating in this tissue.

Muscarinic receptors in isolated guinea pig pancreatic ducts

Biochemical and pharmacological characteristics of muscarinic cholinergic receptors in isolated guinea pig pancreatic ducts were determined in the present study. Duct homogenates bound 6.82 +/- 0.69 fmol of [3H]N-methylscopolamine ([3H]NMS)/micrograms of DNA with a Kd of 0.73 +/- 0.05 nM. The density of [3H]NMS binding sites in the excretory ducts was seven times greater than that in acini from the same pancreases. Competition binding studies with atropine, pirenzepine, 11-[[2-[(diethylamino)methyl]-1-piperidinyl]acetyl]-5,11-dihydro-6H- pyrido[2,3-b] [1,4]benzodiazepine-6-one (AF-DX 116), and 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methyl piperidine methiodide (4-DAMP) indicated that both M2 and M3 subtypes of muscarinic receptors are present in these preparations of isolated pancreatic ducts. Electrophoretic analysis of [3H]propylbenzilylcholine mustard-labeled unreduced and reduced duct muscarinic receptors provided molecular mass estimates of 62.6 +/- 2.5 and 58.0 +/- 1.6 kDa, respectively. Deglycosylation of ductal muscarinic receptors with N-glycanase decreased their apparent molecular mass by approximately 4 kDa. These results demonstrate that isolated pancreatic ducts express both M2 and M3 muscarinic receptors, with the former subtype predominating.

Direct measurement of acid efflux from isolated guinea pig pancreatic ducts

Objectives: The current studies used the technique of microphysiometry to directly determine the effects of stimulators and inhibitors of pancreatic duct secretion on acid efflux from isolated pancreatic ducts. Methods: Main and interlobular ducts were isolated from guinea pig pancreata by collagenase digestion and manual selection. Segments were placed in the chambers of a microphysiometer, which uses a silicon chip-based, light-addressable potentiometric sensor to determine the proton concentration in the superfusing solution. Isolated ducts were superfused with a low buffer capacity Ringers solution at 37°C and the extracellular acidification rate (EAR) was determined by computer-directed protocols. Results: A survey of potential agonists demonstrated that both secretin and the cholinomimetic, carbachol, dramatically increased EAR, with EC50 of 3 nmol/L and 0.6 μmol/L, respectively. The changes in EAR induced by both secretagogues were rapid, peaking within 4-6 minutes, and then declining to a level below the peak but above basal EAR. The enhanced EAR was maintained for at least 30 minutes in the presence of either secretagogue. More modest increases in EAR were evoked by bombesin, substance P, and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP). Cholecystokinin and isoproterenol caused no significant change in pancreatic duct EAR. A combination of amiloride and bafilomycin A1, inhibitors, respectively, of Na+/H+ exchange and of vacuolar type H+-ATPase activity, caused a dramatic drop in EAR but did not fully inhibit the increase in EAR elicited by carbachol, suggesting that other mechanisms may contribute to agonist-stimulated EAR of pancreatic ducts. Conclusions: Thus, the results support the use of microphysiometry as a tool to study pancreatic duct physiology and in particular a method to measure acid efflux from the serosal surface.

Effects of cycloheximide and tunicamycin on cell surface expression of pancreatic muscarinic acetylcholine receptors

The importance of glycosylation in cell surface expression of muscarinic receptors in cultured guinea pig pancreatic acini was investigated. Recovery of the muscarinic receptor population after carbachol‐induced down regulation was blocked by cycloheximide but not by tunicamycin, although tunicamycin reduced [3H]mannose incorporation into acinar macromolecules by up to 90%. Tunicamycin treatment also failed to alter carbachol stimulation of amylase secretion from cultured acini. These results indicate that glycosylation of the glandular subtype of muscarinic receptor in the pancreatic acinar cell is not necessary for its insertion in the plasma membrane or for its functional activity.