Describe the organization of the endocrine portion of the pancreas.

• A. Endocrine islets are absent; only exocrine tissue.
• B. Islets of Langerhans arranged in a cylinder around ducts.
• C. Islets of Langerhans scattered among acini containing alpha, beta, and delta cells with rich capillary network.
• D. Ducts predominant with islets in the surrounding stroma.

Answer: (C)

The endocrine pancreas is organized as Islets of Langerhans scattered throughout the exocrine tissue of the pancreas. These islets contain different cell types—alpha cells (glucagon), beta cells (insulin), and delta cells (somatostatin)—and they are highly vascularized, with a rich capillary network that allows hormones to enter the bloodstream quickly. This arrangement sits among the surrounding acinar cells that form the digestive enzyme–producing exocrine portion, so the ducts and acini dominate the tissue outside the islets. The other descriptions imply absence of islets, a cylinder around ducts, or ducts being predominant, which does not reflect how the pancreas is actually organized.