Taurine (TAU) supplementation increases insulin secretion in response to high glucose concentrations in rodent islets. This effect is probably due to an increase in Ca2+ handling by the islet cells. Here, we investigated the possible involvement of the cholinergic/phospholipase C (PLC) and protein kinase (PK) A pathways in this process. Adult mice were fed with 2 % TAU in drinking water for 30 d. The mice were killed and pancreatic islets isolated by the collagenase method. Islets from TAU-supplemented mice showed higher insulin secretion in the presence of 8·3 mm-glucose, 100 μm-carbachol (Cch) and 1 mm-3-isobutyl-1-methyl-xanthine (IBMX), respectively. The increase in insulin secretion in response to Cch in TAU islets was accompanied by a higher intracellular Ca2+ mobilisation and PLCβ2 protein expression. The Ca2+ uptake was higher in TAU islets in the presence of 8·3 mm-glucose, but similar when the islets were challenged by glucose plus IBMX. TAU islets also showed an increase in the expression of PKAα protein. This protein may play a role in cation accumulation, since the amount of Ca2+ in these islets was significantly reduced by the PKA inhibitors: N-[2-(p-bromocinnamylamino)ethyl]-5-isoquinoline sulfonamide (H89) and PK inhibitor-(6–22)-amide (PKI). In conclusion, TAU supplementation increases insulin secretion in response to glucose, favouring both influx and internal mobilisation of Ca2+, and these effects seem to involve the activation of both PLC–inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate and cAMP–PKA pathways.