Trypsin enzymatic activity was measured from pancreas homogenates using trypsin activity assay kit (3043, Chondrex Inc.) following manufacturer’s instructions. Briefly, small pancreatic tissue pieces (25–30 mg) were washed in PBS, homogenized in 1× RIPA lysis buffer (ab156034, Abcam), and centrifuged at 13,000g for 10 minutes at 4°C. The total protein concentration from the collected supernatant was measured by BCA analysis (23225, Pierce Biotechnology), which was then used for the trypsin activity assay.
Neutrophil infiltration in the pancreas and lungs was quantified by measuring the MPO activity in the tissues utilizing the MPO Activity Assay Kit (K747, BioVision). For this assay, tissue samples (~20 mg) washed in PBS were homogenized in 500 μL of MPO Assay Buffer at 10,000g for 10 minutes at 4°C. Concentration of total protein from the collected supernatant was estimated by BCA analysis (23225, Pierce Biotechnology) and then utilized to measure MPO activity following manufacturer protocol.