Canadian Medical Guide > Chemicals and Drugs > Hormones, Hormone Substitutes, and Hormone Antagonists > Hormones > Pancreatic Hormones Terms and Definitions

Pancreatic Hormones

Medical Definition:	Peptide hormones secreted into the blood by cells in the ISLETS OF LANGERHANS of the pancreas. The alpha cells secrete glucagon; the beta cells secrete insulin; the delta cells secrete somatostatin; and the PP cells secrete pancreatic polypeptide.
Guide Notes:	/biosyn /physiol permitted

Pancreatic Hormones Categories.

	Glucagon - A pancreatic hormone secreted by the alpha cells of the islets of Langerhans. It is a 29-amino acid straight chain polypeptide (MW 3550 D) that plays an important role in regulation of blood glucose concentration, ketone metabolism, and several other biochemical and physiological processes. (From Gilman et al., Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 9th ed, p1511)
	Insulin - A protein hormone secreted by beta cells of the pancreas. Insulin plays a major role in the regulation of glucose metabolism, generally promoting the cellular utilization of glucose. It is also an important regulator of protein and lipid metabolism. Insulin is used as a drug to control insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.
	Pancreatic Polypeptide - A 36-amino acid polypeptide with physiological regulatory functions. It is secreted by pancreatic tissue. Plasma pancreatic polypeptide increases after ingestion of food, with age, and in disease states. A lack of pancreatic polypeptide in the islets of Langerhans has been associated with the obese syndrome in rats and mice.

Pancreatic Hormones Medical Definitions and Terms

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