Localization in the gastrointestinal tract of immunoreactive prosomatostatin

Antisera against 5 different regions of the entire prosomatostatin molecule were used for immunohistochemical mapping of prosomatostatin-containing structures in the pig gastrointestinal tract, and for radioimmunological and chromatographical analysis of the products of prosomatostatin in extracts of ileal mucosa. The latter showed that the antisera were capable of identifying components containing N-terminal as well as C-terminal parts of prosomatostatin. Endocrine cells were identified with all antisera in most parts of the gastrointestinal tract, and varicose nerve fibres were observed in all parts of the small intestine but not in the stomach and the colon. The colon contained very few immunoreactive structures. Immunoreactive nerve cell bodies were found in the submucous plexus of the small intestine. All immunoreactive endocrine cells in the stomach and the duodenum and all immunoreactive nerves were stained by all 5 antisera whereas the small intestinal endocrine cells did not stain for the most N-terminal region of prosomatostatin. The results suggest that all gastrointestinal somatostatin is derived from the same precursor molecule, which, however, in the small intestinal endocrine cells is processed differently from that of the other tissues.