Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) is an established and accepted treatment of biliary diseases such as gallstones and primary biliary cirrhosis. Mechanisms of action of UDCA are not so far completely elucidated. UDCA tablets are indicated for the dissolution of small to medium sized radiolucent, cholesterol-rich gall-stones in patients with a functioning gall bladderand in the treatment of primary bi...

Ocaliva, a synthetic bile acid analog with high affinity for the nuclear bile acid receptor FXR, is effective in treating primary biliary cholangitis, an autoimmune liver disease. It works in patients who fail to respond to or cannot tolerate conventional treatment with the natural bile acid ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA).

Background—Stimulated bile acid synthesis preferentially utilises newly synthesised cholesterol, raising the posssiblity that combination of simvastatin (an inhibitor of cholesterol synthesis) with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA; a stimulator of bile acid synthesis) may result in reduced bile acid synthesis and greater enrichment of the pool with UDCA than that achieved with UDCA treatment alone. A...

Colorectal cancer is respectively the third and second most common cancer among men and women in France. Interest in chemoprevention for colorectal cancer has increased over the last two decades. Beside non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) may have chemopreventive action in colorectal cancer with a likely better tolerance. In high-risk populations such as patients ...

Background and objectivesLiver damage in cholestasis is multifactorial, yet bile acid-mediated hepatotoxicity pivotal. Honey consumption has many physiological effects; it influences detoxification process (phase I, II III), antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immune-stimulant, anti-ulcer, wound/burn healing effects others. The acid ursodeoxycholic (UDCA) currently used off-label to treat neonatal ...

Significant amounts of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) used for the treatment of patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) become epimerized at C-3 to isoUDCA. We investigated the metabolism of isoUDCA and a possible pharmacologic effect in five patients (51.4 5.8 years old; 3 females, 2 males) with PBC and persistent elevations of -glutamyl transpeptidase ( -GT) and alkaline phosphatase despit...

Bear bile has been included in Asian pharmacopeias for thousands of years in treatment of several diseases, ranging from sore throat to hemorrhoids. The hydrophilic bile acids tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) and ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) are the major bile acids of bear bile. Both of these are available as synthetic formulations and are approved by the health administrations of several coun...

BACKGROUND Stimulated bile acid synthesis preferentially utilises newly synthesised cholesterol, raising the possibility that combination of simvastatin (an inhibitor of cholesterol synthesis) with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA; a stimulator of bile acid synthesis) may result in reduced bile acid synthesis and greater enrichment of the pool with UDCA than that achieved with UDCA treatment alone. ...

Cholestasis can be defined as the manifestation of defective bile acid transport from the liver to the intestine. Most chronic cholestatic conditions can progress towards cirrhosis. At this stage, liver transplantation is the treatment of choice. Most of the drugs so far evaluated show some degree of efficacy but have major side effects. Given that ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) has no apparent to...