Calcium secretion in the isolated perfused canine pancreas

The quantitative relation of calcium and protein secretion was studied on the isolated perfused canine pancreas at different secretory states of hydrokinetic and ecbolic stimulation and various extracellular Ca++-concentrations. 1. Calcium and protein secretion are correlated at both ecbolic and hydrokinetic stimulation as well as by biological or synthetic secretion. 2. Enzyme-associated calcium was estimated at 35 nmol/mg protein and did not vary under differing stimulatory and secretory conditions. 3. During variable concentrations of synthetic secretin basal protein and calcium concentrations in the pancreatic juice show a hyperbolic relationship to the respective rates of fluid secretion. At flow rates beyond 3 ml/5 min the calcium concentrations asymptotically tend to 0.46 mEq/l while protein concentrations nearly decrease to zero. Moreover, the y-intercept of the regressionline correlating the calcium and protein concentrations gives with 0.48 mEq/l Ca++ additional evidence of the existence and magnitude of an enzyme-independent calcium fraction, which seems to remain constant over the whole range of secretory rates. 4. The omission of perfusate calcium does not abolish the calcium-protein correlation either at hydrokinetic or at ecbolic stimulation, but diminishes the enzyme-independent calcium fraction. 5. Enhancing perfusate Ca++-concentrations augments calcium output byt fails in stimulating enzyme secretion. It is concluded that at exclusively hydrokinetic stimulation basal secreted protein with a definite amount of chelated calcium is diluted by variable rates of pancreatic juice containing enzyme independent Ca++ at a constant concentration. During different secretory states of hydrokinetic or ecbolic stimulation the respective proportions of enzyme associated and independent calcium vary, and thus determine changes in the calcium-protein ratios. Extracellular calcium can only influence the non-protein-bound calcium fraction of the pancreatic juice presumably by diffusion from the extracellular fluid through the ductal epithelium rather than by an active secretory mechanism.