Bile acids assays are laboratory tests designed to measure the concentration of bile acids in biological samples, typically blood or serum. Bile acids are important components of bile, a digestive fluid produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder. These assays are utilized for various clinical and research purposes.
Enzymatic assays utilize enzymatic reactions to quantify bile acids in biological samples. Enzymes specific to bile acids catalyze reactions that produce detectable changes in color, fluorescence, or absorbance, which can be measured using spectrophotometry or fluorometry. Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) techniques provide accurate and sensitive measurements of bile acids by separating individual bile acid species based on their molecular characteristics and detecting them using mass spectrometry. Immunoassays employ immunochemical methods, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), to quantify bile acids using antibodies specific to certain bile acid epitopes.