title: Xenobiotic-induced liver injury and fibrosis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Many different drugs and xenobiotics (chemical compounds foreign to an organism) can injure the bile duct epithelium and cause inflammatory bile duct diseases (cholangiopathies) ranging from transient cholestasis to vanishing bile duct syndrome, sclerosing cholangitis with development of biliary fibrosis and cirrhosis. Animal models of xenobiotic-induced liver injury have provided major mechanistic insights into the molecular mechanisms of xenobiotic-induced cholangiopathies and biliary fibrosis including primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this review, the authors discuss the basic principles of xenobiotic-induced liver and bile duct injury and biliary fibrosis with emphasis on animal models. A PubMed search was performed using the search terms "xenobiotic," "liver injury," "cholestasis," and "biliary fibrosis." Reference lists of retrieved articles were also searched for relevant literature.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Xenobiotic-induced cholangiopathies are underestimated and frequently overlooked medical conditions due to their often transient nature. However, biliary disease may progress to vanishing bile duct syndrome, biliary fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Moreover, xenobiotics may prime the liver for subsequent liver disease by other agents and may also contribute to the development of hepatobiliary cancer though interaction with resident stem cells.
authors.affiliation: Medical University of Vienna, Institute of Pharmacology, Center for Physiology and Pharmacology, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Christoph H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Österreicher
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Trauner
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001652:Bile Ducts / Q000473:pathology; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury / Q000473:pathology*; D002761:Cholangitis / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D002779:Cholestasis / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000473:pathology; D005705:Gallbladder Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D008099:Liver / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D008105:Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000473:pathology; D015262:Xenobiotics / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D015262:Xenobiotics