Oral pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy generally benefits patients with severe pancreatic deficiency. However, the fate of oral pancreatic supplements in the digestive lumen and their possible effects on circulating gut hormones are only partially known. The purpose of this article is to validate an experimental model that produces total pancreatic insufficiency in pigs, and to study the fate of orally administered Eurobiol, a whole pancreas lyophilized preparation, and its effects on circulating plasma levels of five digestive hormones. Pancreatic insufficiency was created by pancreatic duct ligation, and the duodenal, jejunal and ileal contents were sampled through cannulas before a normal meal and 0.5-24 h later. Blood samples were taken at the same times, and plasma neurotensin, pancreatic polypeptide, secretin, cholecystokinin (CCK), and gastrin were measured. In pigs with pancreatic insufficiency, Eurobiol, given during the meal, induced a significant increase in all enzyme activities in the duodenum and the jejunum, and in the levels of amylase, trypsin, and chymotrypsin in the ileum, relative to placebo. In the duodenum, the peak concentrations of enzyme activities were 19, 11, 17, and 29% (p less than 0.001) of the postprandial peak activities measured in control pigs with an intact pancreas for lipase, amylase, trypsin, and chymotrypsin, respectively. In the jejunum, the same activities were, respectively, 30, 11, 25, and 36% (p less than 0.01-0.001) of normal peaks. In pigs with pancreatic insufficiency, basal and integrated meal-stimulated neurotensin levels were increased; basal, peak, and integrated meal-stimulated pancreatic polypeptide and secretin levels were increased, whereas gastrin and CCK were not different from controls.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)