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In the liver, bilirubin is conjugated with glucuronic acid by the enzyme glucuronyltransferase, first to bilirubin glucuronide and then to bilirubin diglucuronide, making it soluble in water: the conjugated version is the main form of bilirubin present in the "direct" bilirubin fraction. Much of it goes into the bile and thus out into the small ...
Bilirubin derives from hemoglobin by glucuronidation. Bile tends to be alkaline on average. The pH of common duct bile (7.50 to 8.05) is higher than that of the corresponding gallbladder bile (6.80 to 7.65). Bile in the gallbladder becomes more acidic the longer a person goes without eating, though resting slows this fall in pH. [12]
Bilirubin is conjugated with glucuronic acid in the liver by the enzyme glucuronyltransferase, making it soluble in water. Much of it goes into the bile and thus out into the small intestine. Although 20% of the secreted bilirubinoid bile is reabsorbed by the small intestine, [2] conjugated
Bile acids have other functions, including eliminating cholesterol from the body, driving the flow of bile to eliminate certain catabolites (including bilirubin), emulsifying fat-soluble vitamins to enable their absorption, and aiding in motility and the reduction of the bacteria flora found in the small intestine and biliary tract.
Bile pigments such as biliverdin possess significant anti-mutagenic and antioxidant properties and therefore, may fulfil a useful physiological function. [5] Biliverdin and bilirubin have been shown to be potent scavengers of hydroperoxyl radicals .
Bile consists of water, electrolytes, bile acids, cholesterol, phospholipids and conjugated bilirubin. [2] Some components are synthesized by hepatocytes (liver cells); the rest are extracted from the blood by the liver. [3] Bile is secreted by the liver into small ducts that join to form the common hepatic duct. [4]
Bilirubin metabolism. Haem is converted into unconjugated bilirubin then conjugated bilirubin. Conjugated bilirubin is then secreted along with bile into the intestine and is either excreted in faeces as urobilinogen or reabsorbed into blood and transported back to the liver.
Blockage or obstruction of the bile duct by gallstones, scarring from injury, or cancer prevents the bile from being transported to the intestine and the active ingredient in the bile instead accumulates in the blood. This condition results in jaundice, where the skin and eyes become yellow from the bilirubin in the blood. This condition also ...