Home › SMLE (Saudi Medical Licensing) › Anatomy & Physiology › The Digestive System › Bile salts are recycled rather than lost. Where …
Bile salts are recycled rather than lost. Where are they reabsorbed so the liver can reuse them?
AIn the ileum, the last part
BIn the duodenum, the first part
CIn the jejunum, the middle part
DIn the colon, after fermentation
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: A. In the ileum, the last part
1. Most components of bile leave the body in the feces, but bile salts are too valuable to discard.
2. They are reclaimed by a route called the enterohepatic circulation.
3. Bile salts are absorbed once they reach the ileum, the last part of the small intestine.
4. From there they travel back to the liver in the hepatic portal blood.
5. Hepatocytes then excrete the same bile salts into newly formed bile.
6. The duodenum and jejunum are where bile salts are still working as emulsifying agents, so absorption there would waste them.
_Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology (CC BY 4.0), Ch 23 "The Digestive System", section 23.6 Accessory Organs in Digestion: The Liver, Pancreas, and Gallbladder_
Related questions
About how much of the water reaching the small intestine is absorbed there?Vitamin B12 binds intrinsic factor. Where is the resulting complex taken up, and by what mGlucose and galactose enter intestinal cells by co-transport with sodium. How does fructosBy which route do chylomicrons reach the bloodstream after leaving an intestinal epitheliaWhat does pancreatic lipase leave behind after acting on one triglyceride?Lactase acts on lactose. Which two monosaccharides does it release?Which three structures are the liver's three main components?Which component makes pancreatic juice slightly alkaline?