MICROCIRCULATION IN PANCREATIC FUNCTION

The pancreas is involved in two major bodily functions: production of hormones involved in the control of carbohydrate metabolism and the pr oduction of enzymes essential to digestion. Pancreatic function is med iated by both neurological and humoral control. The major pathway for humoral control is through the circulatory system, the level of action being in the microcirculation. This introductory paper explores tile need for a deeper understanding of the dynamic morphology, i.e. the ac tual flow patterns in the microcirculation, as a function of the physi ological state and demand to complement the careful ultrastructural ma pping of the microvasculature. The current state of knowledge in this field is reviewed as a basis for identifying important areas of knowle dge and ignorance, and some suggestions are made as to possible proced ures for further experimental studies, particularly in the microscopic observation of the dynamics of the microcirculation with special emph asis on the need for transport studies in both directions across the m icrovascular wall. (C) 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.