title: Bile acids in rat serum as indicators of hepatotoxicity by hornet venom.
abstract: The effect of hornet venom sac extract (VSE) on hepatic function in rats was evaluated by measurement of bile acid (BA) levels. A significant dose-dependent elevation of BA in rat serum upon repeated VSE administration was found. Rats envenomed for 2 weeks showed a significant rise of serum BA compared with the controls or with rats envenomed for 6 days. In rats envenomed for 1 week and killed after another week without envenomation, an improvement of the biochemical status was observed. These observations demonstrated that BA levels reflect the VSE-induced hepatic injury. They suggest that the cholestatic effects of VSE may be due to an impairment of bile acid excretion, but the elevations could also reflect parenchymal hepatic injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Israel.
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Neuman
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Ishay
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Eschar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001647:Bile Acids and Salts / Q000097:blood*; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D002779:Cholestasis / Q000139:chemically induced; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D014862:Wasp Venoms / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D001647:Bile Acids and Salts; D014862:Wasp Venoms