Increased oxidoreduction of deoxycholic acid in cholecystectomised patients.

The extent of oxidoreduction of deoxycholic acid in the enterohepatic circulation was studied in seven healthy subjects and seven patients after cholecystectomy. (12 beta-3H) Deoxycholic acid was given orally together with (24-14C) labelled bile acid. The rate of oxidoreduction of the 12 alpha-hydroxyl group of deoxycholic acid was calculated from the decay in ratio between 3H and 14C. In spite of a normal proportion of deoxycholic acid and other secondary bile acids in bile, patients after cholecystectomy had more than two-fold higher degree of oxidoreduction of the 12 alpha-hydroxyl group than healthy controls. The high extent of oxidoreduction is probably because of an increased exposure of the bile acid pool to intestinal bacteria and may have physiological implications.