Somatostatin desensitization: loss of the ability of somatostatin to inhibit cyclic AMP accumulation and adrenocorticotropin hormone release.

Addition of somatostatin (SRIF) inhibits corticotropin-releasing factor- and forskolin-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation and adrenocorticotropin hormone secretion from mouse anterior pituitary tumor cells (AtT-20/D16-16). However, prior exposure of these cells to SRIF reduced the potency of SRIF to inhibit both corticotropin-releasing factor- and forskolin-stimulated cyclic AMP accumulation and adrenocorticotropin hormone release. This SRIF desensitization is time- and concentration-dependent and reversible. Cross-desensitization to SRIF analogs also occurred whereas SRIF pretreatment did not affect the inhibition by SRIF of 8-bromo-cyclic AMP-stimulated adrenocorticotropin hormone release or did it affect basal cyclic AMP levels, protein content or phosphodiesterase activity. These data indicate that SRIF can regulate the sensitivity of its own receptor and that SRIF desensitization may involve either a down-regulation of SRIF receptors or an uncoupling of these inhibitory receptors from adenylate cyclase.