Cytomegaly of pancreatic D cells in triploidy

Triploidy is a common chromosomal aberration seen in 1% of clinically recognized human pregnancies. Development beyond 10 weeks is unusual. Occasionally fetuses survive past 20 weeks; however, they usually present as a stillbirth with only a few managing some hours of independent life. The clinical features of these infants cover a wide spectrum, but a consistent feature is organ hypoplasia and hypotonia. We observed marked enlargement of somatostatin-producing cells (D cells) in the pancreata of triploid fetuses. Somatostatin-producing cells are widely distributed in normal mammals although concentrated in the pancreas and gastrointestinal tract, generally being antiproliferative and having an inhibitory effect on various functions. The control of fetal growth is not well understood. There is, however, some evidence that somatostatin does play a significant part and our consistent observation of cytomegaly of the pancreatic D cells in growth-retarded triploid fetuses provides more support for this contention.