Somatostatin: a potential antigrowth factor for the exocrine pancreas.

The increases in DNA synthesis and total DNA content after caerulein treatment support the trophic effect of this CCK analog on the pancreas. Over a 15 day caerulein treatment, pancreatic growth plateaued after 5 days and somatostatin is believed to be responsible for this phenomenon. The present study was undertaken to test this possibility. Rats were treated for 2 or 4 days with caerulein (1 microgram X kg-1), somatostatin antiserum plus caerulein or caerulein plus somatostatin (600 micrograms X kg-1). Caerulein increased all parameters studied after 2 and 4 days; pancreatic hyperplasia was established after 2 days. The somatostatin antiserum significantly enhanced the effect of caerulein, especially on DNA synthesis and contents after 2 and 4 days. The trophic effect of caerulein was significantly reduced by somatostatin dramatically so with respect to hyperplasia. The effects of the somatostatin antiserum and those of somatostatin on stimulated pancreatic growth support the hypothesis that somatostatin may be considered an endogenous growth inhibitory factor for the pancreas.