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. 1988 Jun;85(11):3865–3869. doi: 10.1073/pnas.85.11.3865

Glucose stimulates proinsulin biosynthesis by a dose-dependent recruitment of pancreatic beta cells.

F C Schuit 1, P A In't Veld 1, D G Pipeleers 1
PMCID: PMC280320  PMID: 3287379

Abstract

Glucose is a well-known stimulus of proinsulin biosynthesis. In purified beta cells, the sugar induces a 25-fold increase in the synthesis of insulin immunoreactive material over 60-min incubation. Autoradiographic analysis of the individual cells shows that this effect is achieved via dose-dependent recruitment of pancreatic beta cells to biosynthetic activity. Recruitment of beta cells is also seen in isolated islets exposed to glucose. The sigmoidal dose-response curve for glucose-induced proinsulin biosynthesis thus reflects a heterogeneous responsiveness of pancreatic beta cells rather than a progressively increasing activity of functionally homogeneous cells. Dose-dependent recruitment of functionally diverse cells may be a ubiquitous mechanism in tissue function.

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