Evolution of biliary secretion during bile diversion in normal and two-thirds hepatectomized rats

The effect of the interruption of the enterohepatic circulation on bile production in anesthetized rats both before and after two thirds partial hepatectomy (PH) was studied. Both in the control animals and in the different periods after PH, interruption of the enterohepatic circulation led to significant decreases in bile flow and bile acid and sodium output. The evolution of choleresis in all the experimental groups was seen to follow a parallel course to that of sodium output and showed qualitative and quantitative discrepancies with the behavior of bile acid output. The cumulative secretion of bile acids expressed per 100 g of body weight was comparable in the controls and at 384 h after PH, though only in the former did the bile acid circulating pool size seem to be depleted. This depletion was more delayed than that described for conscious nonfasting rats. At 96 and 384 h after PH both cumulative bile flow and cumulative sodium secretion expressed per gram of liver were greater than those of the control animals. The choleretic capacity of the bile acids and the bile acid independent fraction of bile flow were significantly modified in the different posthepatectomy periods.