Hypotrypsinaemia in diabetes mellitus

Plasma trypsin concentrations were measured in 403 fasting diabetics and 106 healthy controls. Basal trypsin concentrations in the normal subjects were 88 ± 6 ng/ml (mean ± S.E.M.). Mean plasma trypsin concentrations in diabetics treated with diet alone (n = 74) were 45 ± 2 ng/ml, while in a group of young ( < 35 years, n = 88) insulin-dependent diabetics, they were very low at 29 ± 2 ng/ml and these levels were inversely related to insulin dosage. The findings may help in the understanding of the pathophysiological changes in the exocrine pancreas in the diabetic state and may also shed some light on the physiological interrelationship between the endocrine and exocrine pancreas.