Influence of dehydrocholic and cholic acids on the biliary secretion of anionic polypeptide fraction, the major apoprotein of the biliary lipoprotein complex.

This work was undertaken to study the effect of intravenously infused dehydrocholate (DHCA) and cholate (CA) on lipid and anionic polypeptide fraction (APF) secretion in bile. APF is a small acidic amphipathic apoprotein closely associated with biliary lipids and bilirubin and involved in the control of bile-destined cholesterol. Rats were infused with increasing doses of DHCA (2 and 3 mumols/min/100 g b.w.) and then CA (1, 2, and 3 mumols/min/100 g b.w.). Each dose was infused for 30 min. As expected, intravenous DHCA inhibited biliary phospholipid (PL) and cholesterol secretion, and CA restored it. When DHCA was infused, the level of APF increased fourfold compared with controls. The APF/PL ratio also increased, but biliary albumin remained stable. When bile secretion was stimulated by infusion of CA, biliary APF returned to normal. These data indicate that biliary secretion of APF depends on the nature and the amount of bile salts returning to the liver, and consequently, APF can be considered a marker of bile secretion disorders.