Objective:To investigate the effects of inositol requiring enzyme 1α(IRE1α) on pancreas development of Xenopus laevies. Methods:The gene-specific antisense oligonucleotides,morpholino (MO)s,were microinjected to knockdown IRE1α and XBP1. The whole mount in situ hybridization of Xenopus embryos was used to detect the gene expression. Results:IRE1α was expressed in developing pancreas in Xenopus. There were serious defects in gut development observed in IRE1α knockdown embryos of Xenopus. The expression of the endocrine marker gene(insulin) and the exocrine pancreas marker gene(amylase) was undetectable during tadpole stages of development in IRE1α knockdown embryos compared to the control embryos. The expression of the pancreas progenitor cell marker genes (pdx1 and p48) was repressed significantly. And after knockdown of XBP1,the expression of insulin and amylase decreased significantly and can’t be detectable. Conclusion:IRE1α plays an essential role in pancreas development of Xenopus and may be through XBP1 dependent pathway.