Newly discovered effects of bile acids on P2X receptors

In addition to their classical role in digestion, bile acids have been shown in recent years to have additional functions, particularly in various cellular signaling cascades. Recently we were able to show that different ion channels of the Deg/ENaC channel family can be activated or modulated by bile acids. In our recent study, published in the journal Purinergic Signaling, we report that another large family of ion channels, the P2X receptors, is also modulated by bile acids. P2X receptors are activated by ATP, expressed in a variety of tissues and serve multiple physiological functions. In particular, family member P2X2 was inhibited by low concentrations of bile acids. Our study shows that bile acids are a new class of natural modulators of P2X receptors.