ceruletide and Hypothyroidism

Many interrelationships exist between the thyroid gland and the gastrointestinal tract. Several past and recent studies have shown that the thyroid gland profoundly influences the structure and function of the exocrine pancreas in the rat. In the present study we investigated the effect of methimazole (METZ), an antithyroid drug, on cerulein induced acute pancreatitis (AP) in rats.. Rats were divided into 3 groups (10-12 weeks age, 200-250 g weight, n: 10). Group B was made hypothyroid with methimazole 5 mg/kg daily for 10 days and the others were untreated euthyroid groups. After 10 days, acute pancreatitis was induced with four doses of 20 microg/kg body weight of cerulein administered s.c at hourly intervals in group A and B while the control group C was given 4 doses of I ml saline. Pancreas wet weight (mg), plasma amylase activity (IU/l) and pancreatic histology were used as endpoints to quantify the severity of the AP.. Plasma tri-iodothyronine (T3) (ng/dl) and thyroxine (T4) (microg/dl) levels were significantly reduced after METZ treatment for 10 days (p < 0.01). METZ pretreatment reduced significantly the cerulein induced increase in pancreatic weight (1,205 +/- 12 mg in METZ treated AP group versus 1,617 +/- 14 mg in AP group, p < 0.05) and the rise in amylase activity (7,078 +/- 816 IU/l in METZ treated AP group versus 8,611 +/- 830 IU/l in AP group p < 0.05).. METZ reduces the severity of cerulein induced AP in rats. This effect might be through its antithyroid property.

Topics: Acute Disease; Amylases; Animals; Ceruletide; Disease Models, Animal; Hypothyroidism; Male; Methimazole; Pancreatitis; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Thyroid Hormones

Exocrine pancreatic function was studied in 15 patients with hypothyroidism and 15 healthy subjects by means of the amino acid consumption test, a new tubeless test based on the measurement of plasma amino acid uptake by the pancreas during pancreatic enzyme synthesis stimulation. Nine of the 15 patients were also studied after they had become euthyroid following thyroxine treatment. Pancreatic function was significantly reduced in patients with hypothyroidism compared with healthy subjects. Treatment with thyroxine restored pancreatic function to normal. In two additional hypothyroid patients studied by means of duodenal intubation, pancreatic secretion of both bicarbonate and enzymes was found to be significantly decreased. It was concluded that the thyroid gland plays an essential role in maintaining the functional integrity of the exocrine pancreas in humans.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Amino Acids; Analysis of Variance; Ceruletide; Female; Humans; Hypothyroidism; Male; Middle Aged; Pancreas; Pancreatic Function Tests; Secretin; Thyroid Hormones; Thyroxine