Somatostatin receptor type 2 mediates bombesin-induced inhibition of gastric acid secretion in mice

Bombesins: A New Frontier in Hybrid Compound Development

Recently, bombesin (BN) and its analogs have attracted much attention as excellent anticancer agents because they interact with specific receptors widely distributed on the surface of various cancer cells. However, their biological properties proceed far beyond this, given a broad spectrum of activity. Bombesin receptor ligands are effective drugs for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis or gastrointestinal diseases. However, most diseases are complex, and the use of polytherapy may lead to pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic drug-drug interactions, resulting in side effects. Therefore, there is a need to develop effective compounds that also contain BN or its analogs, which are combined with other structural entities, thus generating a so-called hybrid drug. Hybrid drugs that contain bombesin pharmacophore(s) may be proposed as a solution to the problem of polytherapy or the lack of an effective cure. Such structures have now demonstrated the desired efficacy, though information on these aforementioned compounds is relatively scarce. Therefore, our paper aims to encourage researchers to focus on bombesins. Herein, we indicate that the hybrid approach should also be firmly applied to bombesins and the BN receptor family. This paper's structure is divided into two main sections demonstrating bombesins and their properties, as well as recent data on bombesin-based hybrid compounds and their potential usefulness in medicine. Overall, it refers to the discovery and synthesis of modified bombesin-based hybrid compounds.

Aberrant Methylation of Somatostatin Receptor 2 Gene Is Initiated in Aged Gastric Mucosa Infected with Helicobacter pylori and Consequential Gene Silencing Is Associated with Establishment of Inflammatory Microenvironment In Vitro Study

The loss-of-function variants are thought to be associated with inflammation in the stomach. We here aimed to evaluate the extent and role of methylation at the SSTR2 promoter in inflammation and gastric tumor formation. A whole-genome bisulfite sequencing analysis revealed that the SSTR2 promoter was significantly hypermethylated in gastric tumors, dysplasia, and intestinal metaplasia compared to non-tumor tissues from patients with gastric cancer. Using public data, we confirmed SSTR2 promoter methylation in primary gastric tumors and intestinal metaplasia, and even aged gastric mucosae infected with Helicobacter pylori, suggesting that aberrant methylation is initiated in normal gastric mucosa. The loss-of-function of SSTR2 in SNU638 cell-induced cell proliferation in vitro, while stable transfection of SSTR2 in AGS and MKN74 cells inhibited cell proliferation and tumorigenesis in vitro and in vivo. As revealed by a comparison of target genes differentially expressed in these cells with hallmark molecular signatures, inflammation-related pathways were distinctly induced in SSTR2-KO SNU638 cell. By contrast, inflammation-related pathways were inhibited in AGS and MKN74 cells ectopically expressing SSTR2. Collectively, we propose that SSTR2 silencing upon promoter methylation is initiated in aged gastric mucosae infected with H. pylori and promotes the establishment of an inflammatory microenvironment via the intrinsic pathway. These findings provide novel insights into the initiation of gastric carcinogenesis.

Activation of somatostatin 2 receptors in the brain and the periphery induces opposite changes in circulating ghrelin levels: functional implications

Somatostatin is an important modulator of neurotransmission in the central nervous system and acts as a potent inhibitor of hormone and exocrine secretion and regulator of cell proliferation in the periphery. These pleiotropic actions occur through interaction with five G protein-coupled somatostatin receptor subtypes (sst(1) (-) (5)) that are widely expressed in the brain and peripheral organs. The characterization of somatostatin's effects can be investigated by pharmacological or genetic approaches using newly developed selective sst agonists and antagonists and mice lacking specific sst subtypes. Recent evidence points toward a divergent action of somatostatin in the brain and in the periphery to regulate circulating levels of ghrelin, an orexigenic hormone produced by the endocrine X/A-like cells in the rat gastric mucosa. Somatostatin interacts with the sst(2) in the brain to induce an increase in basal ghrelin plasma levels and counteracts the visceral stress-related decrease in circulating ghrelin. By contrast, stimulation of peripheral somatostatin-sst(2) signaling results in the inhibition of basal ghrelin release and mediates the postoperative decrease in circulating ghrelin. The peripheral sst(2)-mediated reduction of plasma ghrelin is likely to involve a paracrine action of D cell-derived somatostatin acting on sst(2) bearing X/A-like ghrelin cells in the gastric mucosa. The other member of the somatostatin family, named cortistatin, in addition to binding to sst(1) (-) (5) also directly interacts with the ghrelin receptor and therefore may simultaneously modulate ghrelin release and actions at target sites bearing ghrelin receptors representing a link between the ghrelin and somatostatin systems.

Somatostatin and the gastrointestinal tract

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Somatostatin influences motility, secretion, and absorption and often has in vivo a modulating, indirect effect on target cells in the gastrointestinal tract. Knowledge on tissue-specific expression of the five somatostatin receptors (SSTRs), their capacities for internalization and downregulation, their subtype-specific intracellular messengers, and the possibility of forming functionally distinct homodimers or heterodimers, has further complicated the actual in-vivo mechanism of action of somatostatin. This review reports recent in-vivo and in-vitro studies on somatostatin effects on the gastrointestinal tract and pancreas, most of them using a new engineered animal model able to define specific roles of somatostatin and/or its receptor subtypes.

RECENT FINDINGS

SSTR2 knockout mice showed normal circulating gastrin and unchanged acid output, suggesting a high degree of plasticity behind gastric acid secretion. Intestinal inflammation significantly increased somatostatin mRNA in SSTR2 null compared to wild type suggesting that somatostatin mediates inflammation also in SSTR2 null mice. In pancreatic islets of SSTR1-5 null mice no variations of islet size, cellular organization or glucagon or insulin content was shown when compared with null SSTRs and control mice.

SUMMARY

Although none of the recent findings produced on somatostatin seem ready to be considered for clinical application, recent developments of animal models such as SSTR knockout mice have highlighted promising results to better understand the direct and indirect effects of somatostatin on gastrointestinal tract functions.

Long-term suppressive effect of octreotide on progression of metastatic gastrinoma with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1: seven-year follow up

A 30-year-old woman had a history of prolactinoma and primary hyperparathyroidism. She was diagnosed as having multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 with gastrinoma and liver metastases. Octreotide therapy was started and the serum gastrin level decreased immediately. Octreotide continued to suppress gastrin secretion over the next 7 years. The Ki67/MIB1 proliferation index of this tumor was only 0.5 % and somatostatin receptor (SSTR) 2 expression was very strong in both 2002 and 2009. This case suggests the importance of investigating the Ki67/MIB1 index and SSTR expression in patients with metastatic gastrinoma.

The role(s) of somatostatin, structurally related peptides and somatostatin receptors in the gastrointestinal tract: a review

Extensive functional and morphological research has demonstrated the pivotal role of somatostatin (SOM) in the regulation of a wide variety of gastrointestinal activities. In addition to its profound inhibitory effects on gastrointestinal motility and exocrine and endocrine secretion processes along the entire gastrointestinal tract, SOM modulates several organ-specific activities. In contrast to these well-known SOM-dependent effects, knowledge on the SOM receptors (SSTR) involved in these effects is much less conclusive. Experimental data on the identities of the SSTRs, although species- and tissue-dependent, point towards the involvement of multiple receptor subtypes in the vast majority of gastrointestinal SOM-mediated effects. Recent evidence demonstrating the role of SOM in intestinal pathologies has extended the interest of gastrointestinal research in this peptide even further. More specifically, SOM is supposed to suppress intestinal inflammatory responses by interfering with the extensive bidirectional communication between mucosal mast cells and neurons. This way, SOM not only acts as a powerful inhibitor of the inflammatory cascade at the site of inflammation, but exerts a profound antinociceptive effect through the modulation of extrinsic afferent nerve fibres. The combination of these physiological and pathological activities opens up new opportunities to explore the potential of stable SOM analogues in the treatment of GI inflammatory pathologies.

Glucagon-like peptide-1, but not glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide, inhibits glucagon secretion via somatostatin (receptor subtype 2) in the perfused rat pancreas

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS

The glucose-lowering effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is based not only upon its potent insulinotropic actions but also on its ability to restrain glucagon secretion. Surprisingly, the closely related glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP) stimulates glucagon release. We examined whether the islet hormone somatostatin, which strongly inhibits glucagon secretion, is involved in this divergent behaviour.

METHODS

At 1.5 mmol/l glucose and therefore minimal insulin secretion, the glucagon, insulin and somatostatin responses to 20 mmol/l glucose, GLP-1, GIP and somatostatin were studied in the presence of a high-affinity monoclonal somatostatin antibody and of a highly specific somatostatin receptor subtype 2 (SSTR2) antagonist (PRL-2903) in the isolated perfused rat pancreas.

RESULTS

In control experiments, GLP-1 at 1 and 10 nmol/l reduced glucagon secretion significantly to 59.0 +/- 6.3% (p < 0.004; n = 5; SSTR2 series; each vs pre-infusion level) and to 48.0 +/- 2.6% (p < 0.001; n = 6; somatostatin antibody series) respectively. During somatostatin antibody administration, GLP-1 still inhibited glucagon secretion significantly, but the effect was less pronounced than in control experiments (p < 0.018). Co-infusion of the SSTR2 antagonist completely abolished the GLP-1-induced suppression of glucagon secretion. In contrast, neither the GIP-induced stimulation of glucagon release nor its inhibition by 20 mmol/l glucose was altered by somatostatin antibody or SSTR2 antagonist administration.

CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION

We conclude that GLP-1 is capable of inhibiting glucagon secretion even in the absence of secretory products from the beta cell. It is highly likely that this is mediated via somatostatin interacting with SSTR2 on rat alpha cells. In contrast, GIP and glucose seem to influence the alpha cell independently of somatostatin secretion.

Distribution and expression levels of somatostatin and somatostatin receptors in the ileum of normal and acutely Schistosoma mansoni-infected SSTR2 knockout/lacZ knockin mice

We recently described the widespread expression of somatostatin (SOM) receptors (SSTRs) in the non-inflamed and inflamed murine ileum. Surprisingly, no significant changes were observed in the SSTR2 expression during intestinal inflammation. These data, combined with several recent independent lines of investigation, raised some question about the long presumed central role of SSTR2 in the SOM-mediated effects in the physiological and pathological activity of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. To further unravel the role of SSTR2 in GI physiology, we studied the expression of SOM and SSTRs in the normal and inflamed SSTR2 knockout/lacZ knockin (SSTR2(-/-)) ileum. The SSTR2(-/-) ileum was characterized by a widespread distribution of multiple SSTR subtypes in non-inflamed and inflamed conditions. Moreover, the absence of SSTR2 did not induce any compensatory effect in the distribution pattern or expression level of any of the other SSTR subtypes. In contrast, the amount of SOM mRNA was significantly lower in SSTR2(-/-) ileum than that in wild type animals. Quantitative analysis revealed a decreased number of SOM-expressing neurons in both enteric plexuses of the knockout animals, implying a possible link between the number of SOM-expressing enteric neurons and the expression of SSTR2 in the enteric nervous system. In conclusion, these data show that a reconsideration of the role of SSTR2 in the GI somatostatinergic effects is in order and further corroborate recent data on the role of other SSTR subtypes in the inflammatory effects of SOM during intestinal inflammation.

Null mutant mouse models of somatostatin and cortistatin, and their receptors

Somatostatin (somatotropin release inhibitory factor, SRIF) and the related cortistatin (CST) are multifunctional peptide molecules attributed with neurohormone, neurotransmitter/modulator, and autocrine/paracrine actions. The physiological responses of SRIF and CST are mediated by five widely distributed G protein-coupled receptors (sst1-5) which have been implicated in regulating numerous biological processes. Much of the information on the effects of somatostatin has been gained through pharmacological studies with analogs and antagonists. The possibility of targeted mutagenesis in the mouse has resulted, over the last 10 years, in the generation of mouse models which genetically lack somatostatin ligands or receptors. We will review here the mouse models generated, the studies undertaken with them, and what has been learned so far.

Control of gastric acid secretion in somatostatin receptor 2 deficient mice: shift from endocrine/paracrine to neurocrine pathways

The gastrin-enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cell-parietal cell axis is known to play an important role in the regulation of gastric acid secretion. Somatostatin, acting on somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR(2)), interferes with this axis by suppressing the activity of the gastrin cells, ECL cells, and parietal cells. Surprisingly, however, freely fed SSTR(2) knockout mice seem to display normal circulating gastrin concentration and unchanged acid output. In the present study, we compared the control of acid secretion in these mutant mice with that in wild-type mice. In SSTR(2) knockout mice, the number of gastrin cells was unchanged; whereas the numbers of somatostatin cells were reduced in the antrum (-55%) and increased in the oxyntic mucosa (35%). The ECL cells displayed a reduced expression of histidine decarboxylase and vesicle monoamine transport type 2 (determined by immunohistochemistry), and an impaired transformation of the granules to secretory vesicles (determined by electron microscopic analysis), suggesting low activity of the ECL cells. These changes were accompanied by an increased expression of galanin receptor type 1 in the oxyntic mucosa. The parietal cells were found to respond to pentagastrin or to vagal stimulation (evoked by pylorus ligation) with increased acid production. In conclusion, the inhibitory galanin-galanin receptor type 1 pathway is up-regulated in the ECL cells, and the direct stimulatory action of gastrin and vagal excitation is enhanced on the parietal cells in SSTR(2) knockout mice. We suggest that there is a remodeling of the neuroendocrine mechanisms that regulate acid secretion in these mutant mice.

Tachyphylaxis of the ECL-cell response to PACAP: receptor desensitization and/or depletion of secretory products

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Rat stomach ECL cells secrete histamine and pancreastatin in response to gastrin and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating peptide-27 (PACAP). This study applies microdialysis to explore how ECL cells in situ respond to PACAP and gastrin.

EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH

Both peptides were administered by microinfusion into the gastric submucosa. The microdialysate was analysed for histamine and pancreastatin (ECL-cell markers) and for somatostatin (D-cell marker).

KEY RESULTS

Microinfusion of PACAP (0.01-0.3 nmol microl(-1)) raised microdialysate histamine and pancreastatin dose-dependently. The response was powerful but short-lived. The response to gastrin was sustained at all doses tested. It is unlikely that the transient nature of the histamine response to PACAP reflects inadequate histamine synthesis, since the pancreastatin response to PACAP was short-lived too, and both gastrin and PACAP activated ECL-cell histidine decarboxylase. Unlike gastrin, PACAP mobilized somatostatin. Co-infusion of somatostatin abolished the histamine-mobilizing effect of PACAP. However, pretreatment with the somatostatin receptor type-2 antagonist (PRL-2903) did not prolong the histamine response to PACAP, suggesting that mobilization of somatostatin does not explain the transient nature of the response. Repeated administration of 0.1 nmol microl(-1) of PACAP (1 h infusions, 1 h intervals) failed to induce a second histamine response. Pretreatment with a low dose of PACAP (0.03 nmol microl(-1)) abolished the response to a subsequent near-maximal PACAP challenge (0.3 nmol microl(-1)).

CONCLUSION

The transient nature of the histamine response to PACAP reflects desensitization of the PACAP receptor and/or exhaustion of a specific storage compartment that responds to PACAP but not to gastrin.

Somatostatin-receptor 2 (sst2)-mediated effects of endogenous somatostatin on exocrine and endocrine secretion of the rat stomach

Somatostatin is a potent inhibitor of gastric acid secretion. Its effects are mediated through five specific receptor subtypes (sst(1-5)), of which sst(2) is dominant on the enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cell and the parietal cell. To study the paracrine mechanisms of somatostatin, the sst(2)-specific antagonist PRL-2903 was used. Effects of PRL-2903 on acid secretion and release of histamine were studied in the totally isolated, vascularly perfused rat stomach. Further, the release of histamine and gastrin after bombesin, alone and in combination with PRL-2903, were studied. Results are presented as mean+/-standard error of the mean (s.e.m.). PRL-2903 concentration-dependently increased the venous histamine concentration from basal 55.6+/-7.5 to 367+/-114 nM at 50 microM PRL-2903. With 10 microM PRL-2903, venous histamine output increased from baseline 6.2+/-0.5 to 20.9+/-4.9 nmol h(-1); P=0.008. The combination of 520 pM gastrin and 10 microM PRL-2903 increased venous histamine output from 41.7+/-7.3 nmol h(-1) with gastrin alone to 95.2+/-9.8 nmol h(-1); P=0.016. Further, 10 microM PRL-2903 increased acid output from baseline 8.5+/-1.8 to 37.4+/-11 micromol h(-1); P=0.017. When combined with 10 microM ranitidine, PRL-2903 did not significantly stimulate acid secretion. Bombesin/PRL-2903 increased venous histamine concentration from 50.4+/-14.8 to 292+/-64.2 nM; P=0.008, and gastrin concentration from 38.6+/-13.1 to 95.8+/-20.3 pM; P=0.037. Endogenous somatostatin exerts a continuous restraint on histamine and gastrin release from the gastric mucosa and significantly reduces baseline acid secretion.

Achlorhydria by ezrin knockdown: defects in the formation/expansion of apical canaliculi in gastric parietal cells

Loss of gastric acid secretion is pathologically known as achlorhydria. Acid-secreting parietal cells are characterized by abundant expression of ezrin (Vil2), one of ezrin/radixin/moesin proteins, which generally cross-link actin filaments with plasma membrane proteins. Here, we show the direct in vivo involvement of ezrin in gastric acid secretion. Ezrin knockout (Vil2^−/−) mice did not survive >1.5 wk after birth, making difficult to examine gastric acid secretion. We then generated ezrin knockdown (Vil2^kd/kd) mice by introducing a neomycin resistance cassette between exons 2 and 3. Vil2^kd/kd mice born at the expected Mendelian ratio exhibited growth retardation and a high mortality. Approximately 7% of Vil2^kd/kd mice survived to adulthood. Ezrin protein levels in Vil2^kd/kd stomachs decreased to <5% of the wild-type levels without compensatory up-regulation of radixin or moesin. Adult Vil2^kd/kd mice suffered from severe achlorhydria. Immunofluorescence and electron microscopy revealed that this achlorhydria was caused by defects in the formation/expansion of canalicular apical membranes in gastric parietal cells.

Role of somatostatin receptors on gastric acid secretion in wild-type and somatostatin receptor type 2 knockout mice

Somatostatin, probably acting through somatostatin type 2 receptors (SSTR2), is the main inhibitor of gastric acid secretion. We characterized gastric acid secretion in SSTR2 knockout mice, and used preferential somatostatin receptor agonists to assess the relative role of SSTR1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 on gastric acid secretion. Basal gastric acid secretion and the secretory response to a meal were similar in conscious wild-type and knockout mice. However, under urethane anesthesia, which releases endogenous somatostatin, SSTR2 knockout mice had a basal secretion 11-15-fold higher than wild-type animals (micromol/10 min:1.40+/-0.09 vs. 0.10+/-0.01, p<0.05). Gastrin immunoneutralization or H(2) receptors blockade (cimetidine), but not cholinergic blockade (atropine), reduced the high basal secretion in SSTR2 knockout mice. In SSTR2 knockout mice, gastrin and histamine stimulated acid secretion with similar efficacy, while in wild-type mice histamine was more effective than gastrin. SSTR2 knockout mice showed also a hypersecretory response to pylorus ligation compared with wild-type animals. In wild-type mice, somatostatin-14, SMS 201-995, and the SSTR2-preferential agonist, DC 32-87, inhibited gastrin-stimulated acid secretion with an order of potency SMS 201-995>DC 32-87>somatostatin-14. Preferential agonists for the SSTR1, 3, 4, and 5 were devoid of any effect. None of the compounds tested affected the high basal secretion observed under urethane anesthesia in SSTR2 knockout mice. These results show that gastric antisecretory effects of peripheral somatostatin are mediated solely through SSTR2. In the absence of functional SSTR2 other somatostatin receptors do not compensate for the lack somatostatin-SSTR2-mediated inhibition. Basal acid secretion and the response to a meal are normal in conscious SSTR2 knockout mice, suggesting the presence of somatostatin-independent mechanisms that compensate for the lack of somatostatin-SSTR2-mediated inhibitory responses.

Cellular detection of sst2A receptors in human gastrointestinal tissue

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Many neuroendocrine gastrointestinal tumours express receptors for the regulatory peptide somatostatin. Among the five existing somatostatin receptor (sst) subtypes, sst2A is the most frequently expressed in these tumours. However, little information is available about the cellular location of sst2A in corresponding non-neoplastic epithelial tissues.

METHODS

We searched for sst2A immunoreactive cells in non-neoplastic gastrointestinal tissues, and evaluated their number and immunohistochemical characteristics with neuroendocrine markers.

RESULTS

The gastric antrum showed numerous sst2A cells, situated in the epithelium, corresponding to gastrin containing neuroendocrine cells, while the gastric corpus was largely devoid of sst2A cells, including enterochromaffin-like cells. The remaining foregut, namely the duodenum and proximal jejunum, also contained a large number of sst2A cells, all being neuroendocrine cells and many of them characterised as gastrin cells. Sst2A cells were also detected in the midgut, in low numbers in the epithelium of the distal jejunum and ileum, but not in the appendix vermiformis, the caecum, or the hindgut, despite the large number of neuroendocrine cells present in this area. In addition, sst2A cells were found in the whole gastrointestinal tract in the myenteric and submucosal plexus.

CONCLUSIONS

While sst2A receptors on antral gastrin cells presumably mediate somatostatin inhibition of gastrin secretion, the effects of somatostatin on motility and ion transport in the lower gastrointestinal tract may be mediated by sst2A receptors in the neural plexus. These data provide a molecular basis for the physiological actions of somatostatin in human gastrointestinal tissue.

Galanin inhibits gastric acid secretion through a somatostatin-independent mechanism in mice

The role of somatostatin in galanin-induced inhibition of gastric acid secretion in urethane-anesthetized mice was investigated by using immunoneutralization of endogenous somatostatin and somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR2) knockout mice. Intravenous galanin (10 and 20 microg/kg/h) inhibited pentagastrin-stimulated gastric acid secretion by 47 and 33%, respectively. Somatostatin antibody injected i.v. increased acid secretion by 3.5-fold over basal levels but did not modify the antisecretory effects of galanin. Urethane-anesthetized SSTR2 knockout mice had a basal secretion 14-fold higher than wild-type animals, that was inhibited by galanin (10 and 20 microg/kg/h) by 49 and 31% respectively. In mice galanin inhibits gastric acid secretion through a somatostatin-independent mechanism.

Peripheral GABAB agonists stimulate gastric acid secretion in mice

1 We characterized the effects of intravenous GABA and preferential GABAA (muscimol), GABAB (R-baclofen and SKF-97541) and GABAC agonists (imidazole-4-acetic acid) on gastric acid secretion in urethane-anesthetized mice implanted with a gastric cannula, and determined the role of vagal cholinergic mechanisms, and gastrin and somatostatin by using peptide immunoneutralization, the SSTR2 antagonist, PRL-2903, and SSTR2 knockout mice. 2 The selective GABA(B) agonists R-baclofen (0.1-3 mg kg(-1), i.v.) and SKF-97541 (0.01-0.3 mg kg(-1), i.v.) induced a dose-related stimulation of gastric acid secretion. SKF-97541 was about 10 times more potent than R-baclofen stimulating gastric acid secretion. Neither GABA (0.1-100 mg kg(-1), i.v.) nor muscimol (0.1-3 mg kg(-1)) nor imidazole-4-acetic acid (0.1-10 mg kg(-1)) affected basal gastric acid secretion. 3 Stimulatory effects of SKF-97541 (0.1 mg kg(-1), i.v.) were blocked by the selective GABAB antagonist, 2-hydroxysaclofen, cholinergic blockade with atropine, subdiaphragmatic vagotomy or gastrin immunoneutralization. 4 Somatostatin immunoneutralization or SSTR2 blockade with PRL-2903 enhanced the secretory response to SKF-97541 (0.1 mg kg(-1), i.v.) by 78 and 105%, respectively. 5 In SSTR2 knockout mice, SKF-97541 (0.1 mg kg(-1), i.v.) increased basal gastric acid secretion by 48%. Neither GABA nor muscimol nor imidazole-4-acetic acid modified basal gastric acid secretion in SSTR2 knockout mice. 6 These results indicate that, in mice, stimulation of GABAB receptors increases gastric acid secretion through vagal- and gastrin-dependent mechanisms. Somatostatin implication might be secondary to the release of gastrin and the increase in gastric luminal acidity.

Peripheral PACAP inhibits gastric acid secretion through somatostatin release in mice

1. Studies in rats suggest that PACAP modulates gastric acid secretion through the release of both histamine and somatostatin. 2. We characterized the effects of exogenous PACAP on gastric acid secretion in urethane-anesthetized mice implanted with a gastric cannula and in conscious 2-h pylorus ligated mice, and determined the involvement of somatostatin and somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR2) by using somatostatin immunoneutralization, the SSTR2 antagonist, PRL-2903, and SSTR2 knockout mice. 3. Urethane-anesthetized wild-type mice had low basal acid secretion (0.10+/-0.01 micromol (10 min)(-1)) compared with SSTR2 knockout mice (0.93+/-0.07 micromol (10 min)(-1)). Somatostatin antibody and PRL-2903 increased basal secretion in wild-type mice but not in SSTR2 knockout animals. 4. In wild-type urethane-anesthetized mice, PACAP-38 (3-270 microg kg(-1) h(-1)) did not affect the low basal acid secretion, but inhibited the acid response to pentagastrin, histamine, and bethanechol. 5. In wild-type urethane-anesthetized mice pretreated with somatostatin antibody or PRL-2903 and in SSTR2 knockout mice, peripheral infusion of PACAP-38 or somatostatin-14 did not inhibit the increased basal gastric acid secretion. 6. In conscious wild-type mice, but not in SSTR2 knockout mice, PACAP-38 inhibited gastric acid secretion induced by 2-h pylorus ligation. The antisecretory effect of PACAP-38 was prevented by immunoneutralization of somatostatin. 7. These results indicate that, in mice, peripheral PACAP inhibits gastric acid secretion through the release of somatostatin and the activation of SSTR2 receptors. There is no evidence for stimulatory effects of PACAP on acid secretion in mice.

Genetic deletion of somatostatin receptor 1 alters somatostatinergic transmission in the mouse retina

In the mammalian retina, sparse amacrine cells contain somatostatin-14 (SRIF) which acts at multiple levels of neuronal circuitry through distinct SRIF receptors (sst(1-5)). Among them, the sst1 receptor has been localised to SRIF-containing amacrine cells in the rat and rabbit retina. Little is known about sst1 receptor localisation and function in the mouse retina. We have addressed this question in the retina of mice with deletion of sst1 receptors (sst1 KO mice). In the retina of wild type (WT) mice, sst1 receptors are localised to SRIF-containing amacrine cells, whereas in the retina of sst1 KO mice, sst1 receptors are absent. sst1 receptor loss causes a significant increase in retinal levels of SRIF, whereas it does not affect SRIF messenger RNA indicating that sst1 receptors play a role in limiting retinal SRIF at the post-transcriptional level. As another consequence of sst1 receptor loss, levels of expression of sst2 receptors are significantly higher than in control retinas. Together, these findings provide the first demonstration of prominent compensatory regulation in the mouse retina as a consequence of a distinct SRIF receptor deletion. The fact that in the absence of the sst1 receptor, retinal SRIF increases in concomitance with an increase in sst2 receptors suggests that SRIF may regulate sst2 receptor expression and that this regulatory process is controlled upstream by the sst1 receptor. This finding can be important in the design of drugs affecting SRIF function, not only in the retina, but also elsewhere in the brain.