POSTMATURITY IN THE RAT: HIGH LEVELS OF GLUCAGON IN THE PLASMA OF THE FOETUS AND NEONATE

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
*Laboratoire de Physiologie du Développement, Tour 23/33, Université Paris VII, 2 Place Jussieu, 75005 Paris, France and †Unité de Recherches de Diabétologie et d'Etudes Radio-Immunologlques des Hormones Protéiques, U.55 (INSERM), Hôpital Saint-Antoine, 184 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine, 75012 Paris, France (Received 1 November 1977) Experimental prolonged gestation in the rat results in a reduction in the amounts of insulin and glucagon accumulated in the pancreas, a low level of insulin in the plasma and a sharp depletion of hepatic glycogen stores (Portha, Rosselin & Picon, 1976). Moreover, in the liver of the postmature foetus the activities of the main glyconeogenic enzymes, glucose-6-phosphatase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, are increased (Portha, Le Provost, Picon & Rosselin, 1978). The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of glucagon in the circulation on these processes. Gestation was prolonged by s.c. administration of progesterone to the mother (2·5 mg/rat) once daily on days 20·5, 21·5

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: