Presence of sorbin in human digestive tract and endocrine digestive tumours.
BACKGROUND
Sorbin, a 153 amino acid peptide isolated from porcine intestine, was localised by immunohistochemistry in endocrine cells of the intestinal mucosa and pancreas and in the enteric nervous system in the pig.


OBJECTIVE
To identify sorbin cells in normal human digestive tissues and to explore the expression of sorbin in 37 digestive endocrine tumours: 14 intestinal carcinoid tumours and 23 endocrine pancreatic tumours including six insulinomas.


METHODS
Two polyclonal antibodies against the C-terminal and the N-terminal sequences of porcine sorbin raised in rabbit were used to evaluate sorbin expression by immunohistochemistry.


RESULTS
In the human digestive tract, sorbin, characterised by both C-terminal and N-terminal immunoreactivity, was found in enterochromaffin cells of the gastric and intestinal epithelium from the pyloric junction to the descending colon. C-Terminal sorbin immunoreactivity alone was found in plexii from the enteric nervous system and in some insulin-containing cells of normal pancreas. C-Terminal and N-terminal antibodies disclosed sorbin in five of 14 intestinal carcinoid tumours; C-terminal antibody alone disclosed a C-terminal sorbin peptide in two of six insulinomas and three of 17 endocrine pancreatic tumours. The presence of sorbin was not associated with a specific clinical syndrome.


CONCLUSIONS
Sorbin is present in the digestive tract in several forms. It is expressed in some intestinal and pancreatic endocrine tumours.
Abou El Fadil-Nicol
F
F
INSERM Unité 45, Hôpital E Herriot, 69437 Lyon Cedex 03, France.
Berger
F
F
Descroix-Vagne
M
M
Pansu
D
D
D000368:Aged; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002011:Brunner Glands / Q000737:chemistry; D002276:Carcinoid Tumor / Q000737:chemistry; D004701:Endocrine Gland Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry*; D019858:Enteroendocrine Cells / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D005770:Gastrointestinal Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007078:Ileal Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry; D007082:Ileum / Q000737:chemistry; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007340:Insulinoma / Q000737:chemistry; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000737:chemistry; D007580:Jejunal Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry; D007583:Jejunum / Q000737:chemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry; D010455:Peptides / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D011817:Rabbits
D010455:Peptides; C071218:sorbin peptide