Cyclic AMP dynamics in the pancreatic β-cell

Abstract

Insulin secretion from pancreatic β-cells is tightly regulated by glucose and other nutrients, hormones, and neural factors. The exocytosis of insulin granules is triggered by an elevation of the cytoplasmic Ca concentration ([Ca]i) and is further amplified by cyclic AMP (cAMP). Cyclic AMP is formed primarily in response to glucoincretin hormones and other Gs-coupled receptor agonists, but generation of the nucleotide is critical also for an optimal insulin secretory response to glucose. Nutrient and receptor stimuli trigger oscillations of the cAMP concentration in β-cells. The oscillations arise from variations in adenylyl cyclase-mediated cAMP production and phosphodiesterase-mediated degradation, processes controlled by factors like cell metabolism and [Ca]i. Protein kinase A and the guanine nucleotide exchange factor Epac2 mediate the actions of cAMP in β-cells and operate at multiple levels to promote exocytosis and pulsatile insulin secretion. The cAMP signaling system contains important targets for pharmacological improvement of insulin secretion in type 2 diabetes. © 2012 Informa Healthcare.