This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Sign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Stercobilinogen

Authoring team

Stercobilinogen is a bile pigment derived from conjugated bilirubin during transit through the gastrointestinal tract. It is formed due to a reduction reaction carried out by bacterial enzymes. It is colourless and water soluble.

Stercobilinogen may have several fates:

  • the majority is oxidized to stercobilin within the gastrointestinal tract
  • roughly 10% is reabsorbed and reconveyed to the liver via the portal circulation - enterohepatic circulation
  • minimal absorption in rectum and excretion by kidney

Reference

  1. Boyer JL. Bile formation and secretion. Compr Physiol. 2013 Jul;3(3):1035-78.

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page