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A hepatocyte is a cell of the main parenchymal tissue of the liver. Hepatocytes make up 80% of the liver's mass. These cells are involved in: Protein synthesis; Protein storage; Transformation of carbohydrates; Synthesis of cholesterol, bile salts and phospholipids; Detoxification, modification, and excretion of exogenous and endogenous substances
Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is a cause of acute and chronic liver disease caused specifically by medications and the most common reason for a drug to be withdrawn from the market after approval. The liver plays a central role in transforming and clearing chemicals and is susceptible to the toxicity from these agents.
All plasma proteins except Gamma-globulins are synthesised in the liver. [1] Human serum albumin, osmolyte and carrier protein; α-fetoprotein, the fetal counterpart of serum albumin; Soluble plasma fibronectin, forming a blood clot that stops bleeding; C-reactive protein, opsonin on microbes, [2] acute phase protein; Various other globulins
Liver regeneration is the process by which the liver is able to replace damaged or lost liver tissue. The liver is the only visceral organ with the capacity to regenerate. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] The liver can regenerate after partial hepatectomy or injury due to hepatotoxic agents such as certain medications, toxins, or chemicals. [ 3 ]
The main liver cells are called hepatocytes; however, there are other cells that can be observed in a liver sample such as Kupffer cells (macrophages). [2] The liver is the biggest gland of the body. It has a wide variety of functions that range from the destruction of old blood cells to the control of the whole metabolism of macromolecules . [ 3 ]
First-pass metabolism may occur in the liver (for propranolol, lidocaine, clomethiazole, and nitroglycerin) or in the gut (for benzylpenicillin and insulin). [4] The four primary systems that affect the first pass effect of a drug are the enzymes of the gastrointestinal lumen, [5] gastrointestinal wall enzymes, [6] [7] [8] bacterial enzymes [5] and hepatic enzymes.
For example, antibiotics that kill gut bacteria often reduce enterohepatic drug circulation and this requires a temporary increase of the drug's dose until the antibiotic use is discontinued and the gut repopulates with bacteria. This effect of antibiotics on enterohepatic circulation of other drugs is one of several types of drug interactions.
The human body uses glucuronidation to make a large variety of substances more water-soluble, and, in this way, allow for their subsequent elimination from the body through urine or feces (via bile from the liver). Hormones are glucuronidated to allow for easier transport around the body. Pharmacologists have linked drugs to glucuronic acid to ...