Comparison of loxiglumide, a cholecystokinin receptor antagonist, and atropine on hormonal and meal-stimulated pancreatic secretion in man

The effects of loxiglumide, a potent cholecystokinin (CCK)-receptor antagonist, and atropine, a muscarinic receptor blocker, on exocrine pancreatic secretion stimulated by hormones (secretin plus CCK) and a Lundh test meal were studied in healthy young volunteers. Loxiglumide infused intravenously in gradually increasing doses (2-16 mumol/kg-h) caused a dose-dependent inhibition of pancreatic enzyme secretion induced by intravenous infusion of a constant dose of secretin (82 pmol/kg-h) plus CCK-8 (85 pmol/kg-h) but had relatively smaller influence on duodenal volume flow and bicarbonate output. Atropine (20 nmol/kg) also caused a significant reduction in pancreatic enzyme secretion but failed to affect the volume flow or bicarbonate secretion induced by secretin plus CCK, possibly owing to the high doses of secretin and CCK used in these tests. Both loxiglumide and atropine inhibited the pancreatic enzyme response to a Lundh meal, but atropine was more effective in the early phase and loxiglumide in the late phase of the postprandial secretion. Neither loxiglumide nor atropine affected the plasma gastrin and CCK levels, but both antagonists reduced plasma pancreatic polypeptide responses to the Lundh meal. We conclude that 1) loxiglumide results in a relatively stronger suppression of the pancreatic enzyme than aqueous-alkaline secretion induced by secretin plus CCK, whereas atropine inhibits only enzyme secretion; and 2) both loxiglumide and atropine suppress the pancreatic enzyme responses to the meal stimulation without affecting the postprandial plasma gastrin and CCK responses.