Dr. Péter Hegyi - New directions in bile acid therapy

University of Pécs Medical School

The head of the Centre for Translational Medicine, Dr. Péter Hegyi, who has been operating at our faculty since 2016, told MTI: "There have been several publications on the physiological and clinical properties of bile acids, but no summary has been published so far that discusses these two areas together, in a translational approach.

He explained that 95 percent of the bile acid produced by the human body is absorbed from the small intestine and 5 percent is excreted. If the composition, microbiology or pathway of bile is altered, this can lead to serious diseases.

The scientific article also identified around ten drug 'targets' that could be targeted by developing drugs to restore the normal cycling and composition of bile acid. This could reduce the chances of developing disease and the severity of existing conditions.

Dr. Péter Hegyi emphasized the importance of the abstract, saying that the publication reveals new therapeutic avenues in several diseases of major public health concern, such as acute pancreatitis, Barrett's esophagus and colorectal cancer, and thus significantly stimulates further research and drug development in their therapy."

Place of publication of the article: Physiological Reviews 2018.08.01.