Summary
We have reported that in rats with D-galactosamine-induced liver injury, the serum level of indoleacetic acid (IAA), a metabolite of tryptophan (TRP), increases before the increase in serum transaminase activity. To determine whether this IAA is derived from hepatocytes, isolated hepatocytes were treated with D-galactosamine and loaded with TRP, and the changes in TRP and IAA levels in the culture supernatant of the isolated hepatocytes were measured at various time intervals. As a result, IAA level in the culture supernatant of hepatocytes treated with D-galactosamine and loaded with TRP significantly increased in a time-dependent manner. This indicates that in D-galactosamine-induced liver injury, a metabolic pathway which produces IAA from TRP through tryptamine is present in hepatocytes.
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Mizoguchi, Y., Kodama, C., Sakai, M. et al. Tryptophan metabolism in D-galactosamine-induced liver injury. Gastroenterol Jpn 23, 534–537 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02779485
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02779485