Stimulation of insulin release by beta-L-glucose pentaacetate in anaesthetized rats

The beta-anomer of L-glucose pentaacetate, injected intravenously (8.8 nmol /g body wt) into fed anaesthetized rats, caused, over 30 min, a biphasic in crease in plasma insulin concentration. This exceeded the increase in contr ol experiments including the administration of the vehicle (ethanol-H2O, 1- 3, v-v) used to dissolve the ester. It could not attributed to the modest r ise in plasma D-glucose concentration recorded in these experiments. Our fi ndings are compatible with the proposal that selected esters of L-glucose c ould conceivably be used as insulinotropic tools in the treatment of non-in sulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Med Sci Res 27:467-469 (C) 1999 Lippinco tt Williams & Wilkins.