Latency of pancreatic enzyme response to intraduodenal stimulants.

In six dogs with pancreatic fistulas, secretin (500 ng . kg-1 . h-1) was given to provide a flow of pancreatic juice of about 1 drop/s. Amylase concentration was measured in each drop before and after rapid intraduodenal injection of L-tryptophan, sodium oleate, and NaCl or after rapid intraportal injection of cholecystokinin (CCK). Latency of response (time between injection and a sustained increase in amylase output greater than the mean + 3 SD of prestimulation output) was 0.30 min to tryptophan and 0.33 min to oleate. These were significantly (P less than 0.01) less than the latency to intraportal CCK (0.53 min). Atropine and truncal vagotomy increased the latency to tryptophan and oleate 10-fold but had no effect on the latency to intraportal CCK. We conclude that, since the latency of amylase response to intraduodenal stimulants was shorter than to intraportal CCK, the initial response is probably not due to release of hormones. The finding that atropine and vagotomy increased latency of response to intraduodenal stimulants indicates that a vagovagal cholinergic reflex mediates the early pancreatic enzyme response to intestinal stimulants.