The effect of insulin on delayed augmented mast-cell mediated mitogenesis in diabetic rats.

Delayed augmented mitogenic reactivity follows mast-cell secretion in mesentery and skin in streptozotocin-diabetic rats with 4-week insulin-deficiency (Norrby 1982; Norrby et al. 1982; Norrby 1983). In such rats the basal proliferation is essentially unchanged in the mesentery and skin, whereas it is significantly increased in the small gut and significantly decreased in the kidney. On treating rats with 4-week-old diabetes with very-long-acting insulin for over 3 days (16 U/kg X 2 daily) the basal proliferation of the small gut and the kidney apparently became normal, the body weight increased, and the blood glucose concentration dropped substantially and progressively. However, insulin-treatment did not affect the mast-cell-dependent mitogenesis in the mesentery following intraperitoneal injection of the mast-cell secretagogue compound 48/80, as judged by specific DNA activity and mitosis counting. We conclude that some metabolic or cellular feature of diabetes which is not restored by 3-day insulin treatment, and not insulin deficiency itself, is the cause of the delayed increased mitogenic reactivity that follows mast-cell secretion in diabetic rat.