(1) Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Louvain, Brussels, Belgium;(2) Department of Pathology, University Hospital St. Luc, Av. Hippocrate 10, B 1200 Brussels, Belgium
Abstract:
Pancreatic polypeptide (PP) cells were studied in human endocrine pancreatic tumours and in normal human pancreata by immunohistochemical techniques and electron miscroscopy. The existence of long cytoplasmic processes was demonstrated both in tumours and normal tissue. These processes are in close contact with other endocrine cells or with acinar cells. This particular morphological aspect suggests that PP cells may control the function of other cells via paracrine secretion.