Cuyamaca College Cellular Structure and Function of the Pancreas Worksheet

What are zymogens? How do zymogens differ from active enzymes?

Why are the enzymes secreted in the form of zymogens rather than as active enzymes?

Scattered through the sea of exocrine acini in the pancreas are small islands of endocrine cells, the islets of Langerhans. These vital cells produce the hormones insulin, glucagon, somatostatin and pancreatic polypeptide.

• Alpha cells that produce the hormone ________and make up about 20% of each islet; ________ plays a role in blood glucose regulation, with low blood glucose levels stimulating its release.
• Beta cells that produce the hormone _______ and make up about 75% of each islet; elevated blood glucose levels stimulate the release of _______.
• Delta cells that make up about 4% of each islet and secrete the peptide hormone ___________ which can inhibit the release of insulin and glucagon.
• PP cells that make up about 1% of each islet and secretes the ________ ______ hormone that appears to play a role in appetite as well as in the regulation of pancreatic exocrine and endocrine secretions.