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. 2019 Jun 15;9(6):232. doi: 10.3390/biom9060232

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© 2019 by the authors.

Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Enterohepatic circulation. Bile salt export pump (BSEP) and multidrug resistance-associated protein 2 (MRP2) are transporters mediating the secretion of bile acids (BA) from hepatocytes to the bile canaliculus in the liver. BA are stored in the gallbladder and secreted into the small intestine after a meal. Most BA (approximately 95%) are reabsorbed, whereas the remainder is excreted with feces. Apical sodium dependent bile acid transporter (ASBT) in the apical brush border of enterocytes takes BA into enterocytes. Ileal bile acid-binding protein (I-BABP) is related to the intracellular transport in enterocytes. The passage of BA through the basolateral membrane of enterocytes into the portal blood occurs through organic solute transporter (OST) α and β. BA released into the blood from the small intestine are transported into the liver by Na⁺-taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide (NTCP) or organic anion-transporting polypeptides (OATPs). These BA are then reconjugated and secreted with newly produced BA. This recycling system is termed enterohepatic circulation.