Pharmacological potential of novel agonists for FFAR4 on islet and enteroendocrine cell function and glucose homeostasis

Abstract Background To investigate the metabolic effects of FFAR4-selective agonists on islet and enteroendocrine cell hormone release and the combined therapeutic effectiveness with DPP-IV inhibitors. Methods Insulinotropic activity and specificity of FFAR4 agonists were determined in clonal pancreatic BRIN-BD11 cells. Expression of FFAR4 was assessed by qPCR and western blotting following agonist treatment in BRIN-BD11 cells and by immunohistochemistry in mouse islets. Acute in-vivo effects of agonists was investigated after intraperitoneal (i.p.) or oral administration in lean and HFF-obese diabetic mice. Results GSK137647 (10-11-10-4 M) and Compound-A (10-10-10-4 M) stimulated insulin secretion at 5.6mM (p Conclusions Specific FFAR4 agonism improves glucose tolerance through insulin and incretin secretion, with enhanced DPP-IV inhibition in combination with Sitagliptin. General significance These findings have for the first time demonstrated that selective FFAR4 activation regulates both islet and enteroendocrine hormone function with agonist combinational therapy, presenting a promising strategy for the treatment of type-2-diabetes.