22] Hydrolysis and formation of cholesterol esters in rat liver

Abstract

The liver plays a major role in the overall metabolism of cholesterol in mammals. First of all, under normal conditions, the liver is importantly involved in the biosynthesis of cholesterol. Second, the liver is responsible for the only quantitatively important pathway of cholesterol catabolism—the formation of bile acids. Third, the liver is critically involved in cholesterol absorption and participates in an enterohepatic circulation of cholesterol of considerable magnitude. Finally, the liver plays a central role in the regulation of the plasma concentration of cholesterol and of cholesterol ester, via the formation and secretion of plasma lipoprotein molecules containing these moieties. This chapter describes methods useful in the study of cholesterol ester metabolism. The chapter discusses the enzymatic hydrolysis and formation of cholesterol esters in rat liver.