Insulin-Regulatory Mechanisms and Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

STUDIES have shown that the administration of sodium tolbutamide results in a rise of the insulin content of the pancreatic venous blood of laboratory animals^{1 2 3 4 5} and also in the peripheral venous blood of nondiabetic human subjects and patients with non iabetes.^{2 , 6} These findings confirm Loubatières's⁷ suggestion that the sulfonylureas stimulate the pancreas and exert their action through the release of endogenous insulin.The studies reported here provide evidence that tolbutamide has at least a dual action: it stimulates the release of insulin from the pancreas and also increases the rate of utilization of the inactive form of circulating insulin both . . .