Biliary excretion of lecithin and cholesterol in the dog

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Abstract

The biliary excretion rates of bile acid, lecithin, and cholesterol were measured in unanesthetized dogs after interruption of enterohepatic circulation and during infusions of sodium taurocholate, sodium glycocholate, sodium dehydrocholate, SC2644 (a bicyclic organic acid with high choleretic potency), and secretin. Both lecithin output and cholesterol output were directly related to bile acid excretion rate. The curves describing these relationships were concave downward. Molar concentration ratios of lecithin-to-bile acid declined gradually from approximately 0.4 to 0.2 as bile acid output increased from approximately 1 to 70 μmoles/min. Cholesterol-to-lecithin molar ratios were highest (0.05-0.15) at very low rates of bile acid excretion, but descended rapidly to a plateau (0.03-0.04) which was constant over the entire range of bile acid excretion rates from 10 to 70 μmoles/min.

Authors

Henry O. Wheeler, Katherine K. King