Biphasic secretory response of exocrine pancreas to feeding.

By means of a newly developed device, secretory response of the exocrine pancreas to feeding was continuously recorded for 24 h in conscious dogs. It was then found that the postprandial secretory pattern of the pancreas was biphasic. The first peak of secretion, rich in enzymes, occurred 2.3 +/- 0.11 h after feeding and its secretory volume was 25.3 +/- 3.10 ml/h. After the first peak, pancreatic secretion decreased slightly, but started to increase again. At 10.8 +/- 0.31 h after feeding, the second peak of secretion occurred and this was 40.5 +/- 2.93 ml/h, significantly higher than the first peak secretion and the greatest in 1 day. The second peak secretion did not contain a higher concentration of enzymes, but was rich in bicarbonate. Approximately 16 h after feeding, pancreatic secretion returned to the basal level, which continued until the next meal. That water and bicarbonate secretion of the pancreas is the greatest at about the 11th postprandial h had never been reported before. The physiological role of the pancreatic secretion at that time is more likely to be related to the neutralization of acid entering from the stomach than to the digestion of food.