Effects of trypsin inhibitor on the remnant pancreas after 85 percent pancreatectomy in rats.

Major resection of the pancreas leads to disorders of the endocrine and exocrine pancreas. The effect of a trypsin inhibitor on the remnant pancreas was studied in rats after 85 percent pancreatectomy. Impairments of the glucose elimination rate and the integrated insulin response after 85 percent pancreatectomy were improved by means of oral administration of a synthetic trypsin inhibitor for 4 and 12 weeks. The pancreatic insulin content in the animals treated with trypsin inhibitor for 13 weeks increased to about 1.3 times than that obtained in control animals. The exocrine pancreatic function in 85 percent pancreatectomized rats treated with trypsin inhibitor for 4 weeks and 12 weeks showed substantial improvement as shown by the test with N-benzoyl-L-tyrosil-p-aminobenzoic acid (BT-PABA). The pancreatic amylase, lipase, and protein contents in the animals treated with trypsin inhibitor were increased to 1.9, 1.7 and 2.1-fold, respectively, as compared to control animals for 13 weeks. Histologic examination showed a decrease in abnormal islets of Langerhans, and a tendency toward hypertrophy of the acinar cells. These results suggest that oral administration of a trypsin inhibitor to rats is effective in improving pancreatic endocrine and exocrine functions after 85 percent pancreatectomy.