Two consecutive oral glucose tolerance tests were performed on twelve healthy, malemedical students, in which each subject received 20 and 40 gm. of glucose per square meter body surface area. The tests were conducted one week apart, and the sequence in which the two glucose loads was given was randomized. The larger glucose load elicited anincrease in both plasma glucose and immunoreactive insulin response. However, the increase in the plasma insulin response was much greater than the increase in plasma glucoseresponse. Thus, the insulinogenic index, denned as the plasma insulin level divided bythe plasma glucose level, significantly increased as the glucose load increased. These results indicate that glucose load is an important determinant of plasma insulin response, and that in any individual the plasma insulin response is not a simple linear function of coexisting plasma glucose concentration.

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