Formation
Primary bile acids are those made in the liver. They are reliant on a steroid backbone derived from cholesterol. Cholesterol may be obtained:
- directly from the blood
- indirectly from acetate
Cholesterol is converted by the enzyme 7-alpha-hydroxylase into 7-alpha-hydroxycholesterol. The latter compound undergoes slight further modification to form the two key primary bile acids:
- chenodeoxycholic acid
- cholic acid
Secondary bile acids are formed by the action of gut bacteria on the primary bile acids. They include:
- deoxycholic acid
- lithocholic acid
Bile salts are formed from the bile acids by conjugation with taurine and glycine in the liver.
Related pages
Create an account to add page annotations
Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.