Insulin release, insulin content, and glucose utilization in isolated mouse islets maintained in tissue culture.

To elucidate the remission phase in juvenile diabetics the insulin release, insulin content, and glucose utilization were measured in isolated Langerhans' islets from mice maintained for 6 days in a tissue culture at a glucose concentration of 278 mmol, followed by a culture period of 4 days at 6.1 mmol glucose. These experiments revealed that the ability of the islets to store and secrete insulin during glucose stimulation decreased considerably during incubation at high concentrations of glucose. When the glucose concentration in the incubation medium was reduced, these properties could be re-established. Basal as well as glucose-stimulated glucose utilization increased greatly during incubation at high glucose concentrations. However, it was not possible to normalize the glucose utilization during 4 days' incubation at 6.1 mmol glucose. The results indicate that unphysiologically high concentrations of glucose may induce long-lasting changes in the function of Langerhans' islets.