title: Endocrine pancreatic cells of postnatal "diabetes" (db) mice in cell culture.
abstract: Ultrastructural characteristics as well as secretory and biosynthetic behavior of monolayer pancreatic cell cultures established from 4-day-old C57BL/KsJ misty diabetic (m db/m db) mice have been studied in comparison to normal littermate controls. Hypersecretion of glucagon by alpha-cells from BL/Ks misty diabetic mice after 2 days in vitro was found to precede any hyperfunction of the insulin-secreting beta-cells. The increased level of glucagon-release in BL/Ks cell cultures from diabetic mice was accompanied by a greatly enhanced level of incorporation of [3H]tryptophan into glucagon-like molecules whose specific radioactivity was up to 15-fold higher than that observed in cultures from genetic controls. The finding of an alpha-cell dysfunction in cultures established from preweaning diabetic BL/Ks mice suggests that glucagon could play an early role in shaping the events that culminate in the expression of frank diabetes in this inbred strain.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D046508:Culture Techniques; D003594:Cytoplasmic Granules / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D005934:Glucagon / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000494:pharmacology; D007328:Insulin / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D009940:Organoids / Q000648:ultrastructure; D014044:Tolbutamide / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D007328:Insulin; D005934:Glucagon; D014044:Tolbutamide; D004837:Epinephrine