History and Uses: Although calcium is the fifth most abundant element in the earth's crust, it is never found free in nature since it easily forms compounds by reacting with oxygen and water.Metallic calcium was first isolated by Sir Humphry Davy in 1808 through the electrolysis of a mixture of lime (CaO) and mercuric oxide (HgO).ther common compounds of calcium include: calcium sulfate (CaSO 4), also known as gypsum, which is used to make dry wall and plaster of Paris, calcium nitrate (Ca(NO 3) 2), a naturally occurring fertilizer and calcium phosphate (Ca 3 (PO 4) 2), the main material found in bones and teeth.
incretin: A gastrointestinal hormone causing an increase in the amount of insulin released from the beta cells of the islets of Langerhans after eating, even before blood glucose levels become elevated.
Print Text Size: A A A. A hormone that stimulates insulin secretion in response to meals. The two most important incretin hormones are called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP).Understanding how these hormones work is helping to yield new treatments for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.urthermore, scientists have also observed that people with Type 2 diabetes have diminished insulin release in response to meals and have speculated that they may have defects in the release or action of their incretin hormones. GLP-1 is made in the small intestine and colon and is released in response to food.