Prevention of leukocyte migration inhibitory factor activity by glucagon.

Leukocyte migration inhibitory factor (LMIF) activity was tested before and after glucagon administration both in vivo and in vitro. In vivo glucagon 1 mg i.v. vs saline administration inhibited LMIF production by T lymphocytes in 85.21% patients (p less than 0.01). In vitro glucagon in physiologic (125 pg/ml) and pharmacologic (50 ng/ml) doses increased the migration area vs PPD 250 microL (migration index 0.5127 vs 0.3210; p less than 0.05). These results show a significant inhibitory effect of glucagon upon LMIF activity. We suggest that glucagon acts by enhancement of the intralymphocytic cAMP/cGMP ratio (cyclic adenosine monophosphate/cyclic guanosine monophosphate).