Cell Metabolism Review Pharmacology, Physiology, and Mechanisms of Incretin Hormone Action Jonathan E. Campbell1 and Daniel J. Drucker1,* 1Department of Medicine, Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X5, Canada *Correspondence:
[email protected] http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2013.04.008 Incretin peptides, principally GLP-1 and GIP, regulate islet hormone secretion, glucose concentrations, lipid metabolism, gut motility, appetite and body weight, and immune function, providing a scientific basis for utilizing incretin-based therapies in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Activation of GLP-1 and GIP receptors also leads to nonglycemic effects in multiple tissues, through direct actions on tissues expressing incretin receptors and indirect mechanisms mediated through neuronal and endocrine pathways. Here we contrast the pharmacology and physiology of incretin hormones and review recent advances in mechanisms coupling incretin receptor signaling to pleiotropic metabolic actions in preclinical studies. We discuss whether mechanisms identified in preclinical studies have potential translational relevance for the treatment of human disease and highlight controversies and uncertainties in incretin biology that require resolution in future studies. Introduction to Incretin Biology tase 1/3 (PC1/3). Original concepts of L cells as predominantly Incretins are gut hormones that potentiate insulin secretion after unihormonal or bihormonal have evolved to reflect evidence meal ingestion in a glucose-dependent manner. The two best- that enteroendocrine L cells exhibit a molecular profile overlap- studied incretins, glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide ping with other gut endocrine cell types and coexpress multiple (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), exert their insulino- peptide hormones, with diversity of peptide hormone coexpres- tropic actions through distinct G-protein-coupled receptors sion changing along the length of the gastrointestinal tract (Habib highly expressed on islet b cells.