title: Investigations into the absorption of insulin and insulin derivatives from the small intestine of the anaesthetised rat.
abstract: Experiments have been undertaken to determine the extent to which cholic acid conjugates of insulin were absorbed from the small intestine of anaesthetised rats by means of the bile salt transporters of the ileum. The measure used to assess the absorption of the cholyl-insulins was the amount of hypoglycaemia following infusion into the small intestine. Control experiments involving infusion of natural insulin into the ileum showed either nil absorption or absorption of a small amount of insulin as indicated by transient dip in the blood glucose concentration. However, when insulin was co-infused with the bile salt taurocholate, this was followed by a marked hypoglycaemic response which was specific to the ileum and did not occur on infusion into the jejunum. When the two cholyl conjugates of insulin were tested viz. B(29)-Lys-cholyl-insulin and B(1)-Phe-cholyl-insulin, both were biologically active as indicated by hypoglycaemic responses on systemic injection, though their potency was about 40% of that of natural insulin. While there was no evidence for the absorption of B(29)-Lys-cholyl-insulin when infused into the ileum, B(1)-Phe-cholyl-insulin did cause a long lasting hypoglycaemic response, indicating that absorption had occurred. Since the hypoglycaemic response was blocked on co-infusion with taurocholate and was absent for infusion of the conjugate into the jejunum, these results were taken as evidence that B(1)-Phe-cholyl-insulin had been taken up by the ileal bile salt transporters. This would indicate that B(1)-Phe-cholyl-insulin is worthy of further investigation for use in an oral insulin formulation.
authors.affiliation: Thistle Research, Westbourne Crescent, Glasgow G61 4HB, Scotland, UK.
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: McGinn
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, West Medical Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, Scotland, UK. Electronic address: James.Morrison@gla.ac.uk.
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Morrison
mesh_terms: D000758:Anesthesia; D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007328:Insulin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007408:Intestinal Absorption / Q000187:drug effects*; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013656:Taurocholic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin; D013656:Taurocholic Acid
keywords: A21,20-S-S-B19-26 insulin decapeptide; Absorption; B(1)-Phe-cholyl-insulin; B(19)-Cys-cholyl-insulin decapeptide; B(29)-Lys-cholyl-insulin; Bovine insulin (PubChem CID: 16131099); Cholic acid; Cholic acid (PubChem CID: 221493); Cholyl-insulin; Human recombinant insulin (PubChem CID: 90488846); Ileum; Insulin; Insulin decapeptide; Jejunum; Sodium taurocholate (PubChem CID: CID: 23666345)