Dysfunction of the pancreas in healthy smoking persons and patients with chronic pancreatitis

The aim of the study was to assess the effect of cigarette smoking on the endocrine pancreatic function by determining the levels of serum glucose and plasma insulin as well as by defining immunohistochemical localization of insulin and glucagon in tissue specimens of the pancreata derived from healthy persons and smoking and nonsmoking patients with diagnosed chronic pancreatitis (CP).

The oxidative method was used to measure fasting glycemia in blood plasma and the method enzyme-linked immunoassay to determine the level of insulin in plasma. Immunohistochemical localization of hormones in paraffin tissue specimens of the pancreas was performed using the LSAB2-HRP visual test with polyclonal insulin and glucagon antibodies. The intensity of immunohistochemical reaction was calculated with digital imaging methodology.

The study revealed a substantially higher level of serum glucose in smoking CP patients and in healthy persons compared with nonsmoking patients and healthy persons, whereas insulin concentration in smoking patients was statistically lower than in nonsmokers. Smoking patients showed significantly lower expression of insulin and glucagon in the pancreas compared with nonsmoking patients and healthy persons.

Impairment of the endocrine function of beta and alpha cells in the pancreatic islets is frequently manifested by complications in pancreatitis resulting among others from long-term smoking.