The effect of gastrin-releasing peptide on the endocrine pancreas.

The 27-amino acid peptide gastrin releasing peptide (GRP-(1-27] was infused at 4 dose levels (0.01, 0.1, 1.0, and 10 nM) into the arterial line of the isolated perfused porcine pancreas. Infusions were performed at 3 different perfusate glucose levels (3.5, 5.0, and 8.0 mM) and at two levels of amino acids (5 and 15 mM). GRP-(1-27) stimulated insulin and pancreatic polypeptide secretion and inhibited somatostatin secretion in a dose-dependent manner. Glucagon secretion was unaffected by infusion of GRP under all circumstances. The effect of GRP-(1-27) on insulin secretion was enhanced with increasing perfusate glucose levels, whereas the effects upon somatostatin and pancreatic polypeptide secretion were independent of perfusate glucose levels. The responses to GRP were unaffected by elevation of the concentration of amino acids in the perfusate. The effects of GRP were unaffected by atropine at 10(-6) M. The localization of GRP within the porcine pancreas, its release during electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve, and its potent effects upon pancreatic endocrine secretion make it conceivable that the peptide participates in parasympathetic regulation of pancreatic endocrine secretion.