The Role of the Kidneys and Liver in the Elimination of Glucagon

In the present project the investigators wish to identify whether the effect, elimination and degradation of glucagon differ between healthy control subjects and patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and liver cirrhosis, respectively. By performing glucagon infusions on healthy control subjects and matched subjects with either limited renal and hepatic function, the contribution of both organs to the metabolic clearance rate (MCR) of glucagon can be tested. A primed infusion of stable isotopic labelled tracers will allow the researchers to investigate the effects of the glucagon infusion on the glucose, lipid and amino acid metabolism. The quantification of the MCR of glucagon will be accompanied by a range of pharmacodynamic measures in order to substantiate whether a potentially altered glucagon MCR inflicts pharmacodynamic changes of glucagon, which could contribute to the pathophysiology of CKD and liver cirrhosis.