Abstract
For 37 days we collected pancreatic juice from an artificial external pancreatic fistula made in a 71-year-old man who had undergone pancreatoduodenectomy (the pancreatic function diagnostic test showed 59.20). Pancreatic juice was collected every 2 hours during the day (6 to 18 o'clock) and every 4 hours during the night (18 to 6 o'clock). In addition to the volume of pancreatic juice, the concentration of bicarbonate and the output of protein, amylase and lipase in the juice were also determined. The mean volumes(M± SE, n=7) were as follows: (1) without food: 57.3±1.92ml during the day and 33.0±1.10ml during the night (p<0.001); (2) with food: 93.8±5.32ml during the day and 42.9±4.16ml during the night (p<0.001). P-values between (1) and (2) were less than 0.001 during the day and less than 0.05 during the night. Peak values of the pancreatic flow rate were observed from 12 to 14 o'clock without food and from 6 to 10 o'clock with food. The pancreatic enzyme and protein secretion showed the same changes as the volume mentioned above; the bicarbonate concentration, however, did not show any significant changes.
In conclusion we found circadian rhythms in human exocrine pancreatic secretion.
