Effects of insulin on adaptive capacity of rat pancreatic acinar cells mitochondria

Abstract

Insulin increases the basal and agonist-stimulated secretion of pancreatic acinar cells, which leads to increase of energy demand and requires sufficient oxidative substrates supply. Cholecystokinin substantially increases the respiration rate of pancreatic acinar cells upon pyruvate oxidation. However, it is not clear how insulin affects mitochondrial oxidative processes at rest and upon secretory stimulation. Experiments were carried out on male Wistar rats (250–300 g) kept on standard diet. Animals were fasted 12 h before the experiment. Pancreatic acini were isolated with collagenase. Basal and FCCP-stimulated respiration of rat pancreatic acini was measured with Clark electrode. Adaptive capacity of mitochondria was assessed by the maximal rate of uncoupled respiration. Statistical significance (P) of differenced between the means was assessed either with a paired t-test or with repeated measures two-way ANOVA and post-hoc Turkey test. Adaptive capacity of pan­creatic acinar mitochondria was significantly higher when pyruvate (2 mM) was used as oxidative substrate comparing with glucose (10 mM). Incubation with insulin (100 nM) for 20 minutes elevated the basal respiration and adaptive capacity of pancreatic acinar mitochondria upon glucose, but not pyruvate, oxidation. Cholecystokinin (0.1 nM, 30 min) stimulated the rate of basal and maximal uncoupled respiration of acinar cells upon pyruvate oxidation, but insulin completely negated this increase of mitochondrial adaptive capacity. Thus, insulin increases the glucose oxidation in pancreatic acinar cells at resting state, but suppresses pyruvate oxidation upon secretory stimulation with cholecystokinin. The mechanisms of insulin action of pyruvate metabolism in pancreatic acinar cells require further elucidation.