Bile Acid Glucuronides, II. Isolation and Identification of a Chenodeoxycholic Acid Glucuronide from Human Plasma in Intrahepatic Cholestasis

The isolation of a glucurono-conjugate of a bile acid has been performed from human plasma in a case of chronic intrahepatic cholestasis. By means of a series of chromatographic steps, esterification with diazomethane and acetylation a mixture of methylester polyacetates of steroid glucuronides was obtained, which could be separated by thin-layer chromatography. Methyl 7alpha-acetoxy-3alpha-O-(methyl 2, 3, 4-tri-O-acetyl-beta-D-glucopyranosyluronate)5beta-cholan-24-oate, synthesized via the Koenigs-Knorr condensation reaction, was used as reference substance. From comparison of the chromatogrphic behaviour and the mass spectrum of the natural compound and the synthetic product the structure of the bile acid derivative isolated from plasma could be established as a peracetylated methylester of chenodeoxycholic acid-3-beta-D-glucuronide.