Effects of Alteration of Biliary Pressure on Bile Composition—A Method for Study: Primate Biliary Physiology V

A method for inducing, maintaining, and measuring different biliary tract pressures was established in rhesus monkeys. A T-tube was placed in the common bile duct and two limbs were exteriorized. All bile was diverted to the exterior via one limb and common bile duct pressure measured through the other limb by a pressure transducer. Interruption of the enterohepatic circulation was controlled by passing the diverted bile through a “stream splitter” which collected a predetermined percentage of the bile and returned the remainder to the animal via a tube duodenostomy. Pressures from —10 to +25 cm of saline were induced in the common bile duct and each pressure was maintained within the range of respiratory fluctuation for several hours. For purposes of illustration, preliminary data from 1 animal on the effect of biliary pressure on bile flow and secretion of biliary lipids are presented.