ELEMENTAL IMAGING IN PANCREAS OF IMMATURE RATS BY MICRO PIXE ANALYSIS

The pancreas is a large gland capable of both exocrine and endocrine functions; it releases digestive enzymes into the duodenum and hormones into the bloodstream. It is known that Zn plays a key role in the synthesis and action of insulin, one of the pancreatic hormones. However, elemental profiles of the pancreas are not well understood. Here, we examined precise distributions of elements in the pancreas of newborn and young rats by scanning microbeam particle induced X-ray emission (micro PIXE) analysis and compared the results to those of adult animals. Micro PIXE analysis revealed a site-specific distribution of elements in the two major compartments of the pancreas, the exocrine (acinar tissue) and the endocrine portions (islets of Langerhans). The Zn concentrations in the pancreas of the newborn (six days), young (three weeks), and adult rats (ten weeks) were 11.3 ± 2.5 μg/g wet weight, 7.26 ± 0.36 μg/g wet weight, and 10.8 ± 1.1 μg/g wet weight, respectively. In newborn and young rats, Zn was detected mainly in the islets of Langerhans, while K and P were distributed more to the acinar tissues than the islet cells. The site-specific distributions of K, P, and Zn were more obvious in the adult animals.