Disrupted Pancreatic Exocrine Differentiation and Malabsorption in Response to Chronic Elevated Systemic Glucocorticoid
September 2010
in “
The American journal of pathology
”
TLDR High glucocorticoids cause pancreatic malfunction and malabsorption, reversible with enzyme supplements.
The study demonstrated that chronic elevated systemic glucocorticoid exposure in transgenic mice led to significant pancreatic exocrine dysfunction and malabsorption. Tg(Crh) mice exhibited symptoms of Cushing's syndrome, including obesity and insulin resistance, and showed acinar cells expressing both amylase and cyp2e1, indicating acinar-hepatic transdifferentiation. This condition caused malabsorption and rapid weight loss in aging mice, which was reversible with dietary pancreatic enzyme supplementation. The study concluded that elevated glucocorticoids promote transdifferentiation of pancreatic cells into hepatocyte-like cells, leading to pancreatic malfunction.
