Figure 2.
The use of bile acids to treat constipation. Normally, bile acids are removed from the ileum via transporters to the liver as part of enterohepatic circulation, leading to reduced concentrations of bile acid reaching the colon and decreased colonic motility. Elobixibat inhibits the uptake of bile acids in the terminal ileum, which increases luminal concentration and improves colonic motility. Chenodeoxycholic acid is a bile acid analogue that increases the concentration of bile acid in the gut and promotes colonic motility. Modified from Menees et al32 with permission from Macmillan Publishers Ltd.