Insulin oscillation

The insulin concentration in blood increases after meals and gradually returns to basal levels during the next 1–2 hours.

However, within an islet of Langerhans the oscillations become synchronized by electrical coupling between closely located beta cells that are connected by gap junctions, and the periodicity is more uniform (3-6 min).

[1] Pulsatile insulin release from the entire pancreas requires that secretion is synchronized between 1 million islets within a 25 cm long organ.

Much like the cardiac pacemaker, the pancreas is connected to cranial nerve 10, and others, but the oscillations are accomplished by intrapancreatic neurons and do not require neural input from the brain.

Pulsatile insulin delivery to the portal vein or islet cell transplantation to the liver of diabetic patients are therefore attractive therapeutic alternatives.

[1] "Chapter 12: Electrical Bursting, Calcium Oscillations, and Synchronization of the Pancreatic Islets by Richard Bertram, Arthur Sherman, and Leslie S Satin".

Insulin release from pancreas is pulsatile with a period of 3-6 minutes. [ 1 ]
Pulsatile insulin release from single beta cells is synchronized in each islet of Langerhans as well as among all islets in the pancreas.
Coordination of pulsatile insulin release. In addition to gap junctions, coordination is done by ATP signaling.