Pancreatic secretory response to intrajejunal tryptophan: studies in dogs with an autotransplanted entire jejunoileum.

In two sets of dogs with gastric, duodenal, and jejunal fistulas, we studied the effect of atropine (14 nmol/ kg/h) on the pancreatic secretory response to intrajejunal tryptophan (0.12-10.0 mmol/h; given against a secretin background) before (n = 7) and after extrinsic denervation of the jejunoileum (orthotopical autotransplantation; n = 6). Plasma levels of cholecystokinin were determined by radioimmunoassay. The incremental bicarbonate response to tryptophan was not significantly different between the two sets of dogs. Atropine had no effect on the incremental bicarbonate response to tryptophan. In both sets of dogs, intrajejunal tryptophan caused a dose-dependent increase in pancreatic protein output, which was reduced by atropine. The tryptophan-stimulated levels of plasma cholecystokinin were not significantly altered by denervation and or atropine. We conclude that in dogs (1) intrajejunal tryptophan stimulates pancreatic bicarbonate and protein secretion via release of hormones, (2) extrinsic denervation of the jejunoileum does not significantly alter the incremental bicarbonate and protein responses to intrajejunal tryptophan, (3) the cholinergic intrinsic nerves of the jejunoileum and the hormone cholecystokinin are probably involved in control of the pancreatic protein response to tryptophan, and (4) the release of cholecystokinin by intrajejunal tryptophan does not depend on the extrinsic and intrinsic cholinergic nerves of the jejunoileum.