Relationship of Serum Bile Acids with Fat Deposition in the Pancreas, Liver, and Skeletal Muscle

Abstract

Ectopic fat deposition is well appreciated as a key contributor to digestive and liver diseases. Bile acids have emerged as pleiotropic signalling molecules involved in numerous metabolic pathways. The aim was to study the associations of bile acids with ectopic fat deposition and lipid panel. Methods: A single 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging scanner was employed to measure fat deposition in the pancreas, liver, and skeletal muscle in 76 adults. Blood samples were drawn to determine total bile acids and lipid panel. Linear regression analyses were run, taking into account age, sex, body mass index, and other covariates. Results:The studied ectopic fat depots were not significantly associated with levels of total bile acids in serum. Total bile acids were significantly associated high-density lipoprotein cholesterol -consistently in both the unadjusted (p = 0.018) and all adjusted models (p = 0.012 in the most adjusted model). Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, and triglycerides were not significantly associated with total bile acids in both the unadjusted and all adjusted models. Conclusion: Fat deposition in the pancreas, liver, and skeletal muscle is not associated with circulating levels of total bile acids. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol is the only component of lipid panel that is associated with total bile acids.

Dietary Fibre for the Prevention of Post-Pancreatitis Diabetes Mellitus: A Review of the Literature and Future Research Directions

“…Primary bile acids are produced in the liver and secreted with bile, which is then converted into secondary bile acids upon bacterial fermentation. Bile acids are required for the digestion and absorption of lipids because they play a key role in the emulsification of lipids and the digestion and absorption of the lipophilic compounds [9]. When bile acids bind with dietary fibre in the gut, up to 95% of the bile acids (both primary and secondary bile acids) are no longer reabsorbed back through the enterohepatic circulation for the synthesis of bile acids.…”