Serum Bile Acids, Cholesterol And Triglycerides In Pregnancy, Cholelithiasis And After The Ingestion Of Alcohol

Abstract

Bile acids are steroids derived from cholesterol in the liver. They are both a secretory and excretory product. Investigations into the nature of the compounds present in bile date back to the first decade of the nineteenth century (1,2). The first preparation of crystalline bile acids was achieved by Platner (3) by the addition of ether to an alcoholic solution of dried bile. The elucidation of the structures of the bile acids was carried out by Wieland and his co-workers, beginning in 1912 (4).