FATTY ACIDS AS REGULATORS OF GLUCAGON SECRETION

GLUCAGON is as essential as insulin in some species for the maintenance of blood glucose, although the factors influencing its release are less well understood. It has been thought, for example, that a low level of blood glucose might serve as a primary stimulus to secretion1-3, but the effects obtained with low glucose concentrations have been small, and may not have great physiological significance. High levels of amino-acids may also promote the secretion of glucagon3-5, but again the regulatory importance of the eifect is questionable. We here report a very marked inhibition of glucagon release by fatty acids and ketone bodies in vitro. It seems quite likely that the α cells of islets are more sensitive to variations in the levels of circulating fatty acids than to other metabolites. © 1969 Nature Publishing Group.