The biological activity of bovine pancreatic polypeptide (BPP) on rat exocrine pancreatic secretion was compared in vivo and in vitro. In anesthetized rats prepared with a bile-pancreatic duct cannula, BPP inhibited cholecystokinin (CCK)-stimulated (10 IDU . kg-1 X h-1) protein secretion in a dose-related manner (P less than 0.001). CCK, from 5-20 IDU . kg-1 X h-1, did not alter the degree of inhibition by BPP at 40 micrograms . kg-1 X h-1, suggesting a nonsurmountable inhibition. Analogues of BPP, including rat pancreatic polypeptide, neuropeptide Y, peptide YY, and the C-terminal hexapeptide of PP, also inhibited CCK-stimulated protein secretion. To determine whether BPP acts directly on acinar cells to suppress enzyme secretion, in vitro studies were performed. BPP and its analogues did not suppress octapeptide of CCK (CCK-8)-stimulated amylase release from either isolated rat pancreatic acini or preparations of pancreatic lobules. Specific binding of 125I-BPP to pancreatic acini was also not observed. From our data we conclude that BPP acts to inhibit pancreatic enzyme secretion in the rat in a noncompetitive manner. Absence of an effect by BPP or its analogues in vitro coupled with an absence of 125I-BPP binding to acini suggest that the inhibitory action of PP on exocrine pancreatic function is mediated by indirect mechanisms.