Somatostatin is an endogenous regulatory peptide secreted by a wide range of tissues including neuroendocrine, inflammatory, and immune cells to inhibit the release of various hormones and growth hormones. These inhibitory actions are mediated through heptahelical transmembrane G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs).2 To date, five distinct subtypes of somatostatin receptors (SSTRs) have been cloned (1). Among the various subtypes, the type 2 somatostatin receptor (SSTR2) has been studied extensively because of its broad clinical applications. Somatostatin analogs targeting SSTR2 have been used as treatments for rheumatoid arthritis, cystitis and other inflammatory diseases (2). Moreover, somatostatin-related compounds hold promise against pancreatic diseases. Abundant SSTR2 expressions are generally detected from cells with pancreatic inflammatory and tumoral diseases (3). In fact, somatostatin administration has been shown to relieve the severities of acute pancreatitis (4), pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and carcinoids (5).As a G i/o -coupled receptor, SSTR2 inhibits adenylyl cyclase and regulates several subsets of K ϩ channels and voltage-dependent Ca 2ϩ channels upon agonist binding. Furthermore, modulation of the activities of tyrosine phosphatase and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) by SSTR2 has been well documented (1). Recent studies suggest that SSTR2 can also employ other G proteins such as G 14 and G 16 for signal transduction (6, 7). Its ability to interact functionally with G␣ 14 is particularly interesting. G␣ 14 is a member of the G q family and has more than 80% homology with G␣ q . Upon activation by SSTR2, G␣ 14 stimulates phospholipase C (PLC) activity and the production of inositol trisphosphate. Unlike ubiquitously expressed G␣ q/11 proteins, G␣ 14 is expressed predominantly in pancreas, spleen, lung, kidney, testis, bone marrow, several early myeloid and progenitor B cells (8), and many of these tissues also express SSTR2 (1); its mRNA has been detected in normal pancreatic islets (9) as well as tumoral pancreatic acinar cells (10). Signaling via G␣ 14 may provide SSTR2 with the capacity to alter gene expression through the activation of kinases and transcription factors. G 14 -coupled opioid receptors, close relatives of SSTR2, have been shown to activate c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNKs) (11) and the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) (12). Although the upstream cellular signals of SSTR2 have been delineated, the mechanism underlying the antiinflammatory and antitumoral effects of somatostatin remains poorly understood. One possible mechanism may involve nuclear factor-B (NFB), a ubiquitous heterodimeric transcription factor that regulates inflammation and cell survival and differentiation (13). In the inactive state, NFB is anchored to inhibitor B␣ (IB␣) in the cytosol. Upon activation, a key regulatory complex, IB kinase (IKK), comprising two catalytic subunits (IKK␣ and IKK) and a linker (IKK␥/NEMO) is stimulated by phosphoryla-* This work was supported in ...