Abstract
OPIOID PEPTIDES1–3 are present in high concentrations in those areas of the brain and gastrointestinal tract4 in which opiate receptors5 are numerous and a biological response to opiates well established6. The report of immunoreactive enkephalin in the pancreas4 raised the possibility that a similar association between the presence of endogenous peptide and opiate receptors might exist in this organ and would be manifested by a biological response to these agents. We report here that an exogenous opiate and an endogenous opioid peptide both exert biological effects upon the endocrine pancreas that are compatible with the presence of opiate receptors in the islets of Langerhans.
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IPP, E., DOBBS, R. & UNGER, R. Morphine and β-endorphin influence the secretion of the endocrine pancreas. Nature 276, 190–191 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1038/276190a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/276190a0
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