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  3. Glucagon's Metabolic Action in Health and Disease

Glucagon's Metabolic Action in Health and Disease

  • Compr Physiol. 2021 Apr 1;11(2):1759-1783. doi: 10.1002/cphy.c200013.
Anja Zeigerer 1 2,  Revathi Sekar 1 2,  Maximilian Kleinert 2 3 4,  Shelly Nason 5,  Kirk M Habegger 5,  Timo D Müller 2 3 6
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Institute for Diabetes and Cancer, Helmholtz Center Munich, Neuherberg, Germany.
  • 2 German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Neuherberg, Germany.
  • 3 Institute for Diabetes and Obesity, Helmholtz Center Munich, Neuherberg, Germany.
  • 4 Section of Molecular Physiology, Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • 5 Comprehensive Diabetes Center, Department of Medicine - Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
  • 6 Department of Pharmacology, Experimental Therapy and Toxicology, Institute of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Pharmacogenomics, Eberhard Karls University Hospitals and Clinics, Tübingen, Germany.
PMID: 33792899 DOI: 10.1002/cphy.c200013
Abstract

Discovered almost simultaneously with Insulin, glucagon is a pleiotropic hormone with metabolic action that goes far beyond its classical role to increase blood glucose. Albeit best known for its ability to directly act on the liver to increase de novo glucose production and to inhibit glycogen breakdown, glucagon lowers body weight by decreasing food intake and by increasing metabolic rate. Glucagon further promotes lipolysis and lipid oxidation and has positive chronotropic and inotropic effects in the heart. Interestingly, recent decades have witnessed a remarkable renaissance of glucagon's biology with the acknowledgment that glucagon has pharmacological value beyond its classical use as rescue medication to treat severe hypoglycemia. In this article, we summarize the multifaceted nature of glucagon with a special focus on its hepatic action and discuss the pharmacological potential of either agonizing or antagonizing the Glucagon Receptor for health and disease. © 2021 American Physiological Society. Compr Physiol 11:1759-1783, 2021.

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