We previously identified two inbred mouse strains, C57BL/6J and CASA/Rk, with different plasma plant sterol levels. An intercross between these strains revealed a broad plasma plant sterol locus on chromosome 14, which peaked at 17 centimorgan (cM) with a maximum logarithm of the odds score of 9.9. Studies in a chromosome 14 congenic strain, 14KK, with a 4-60 cM CASA/Rk interval on the C57BL/6J background revealed that males, but not females, had decreased plasma plant sterol levels and intestinal cholesterol absorption. In two subcongenic strains, 14PKK and 14DKK, with 4-19.5 and 19.5-60 cM CASA/Rk intervals, respectively, both males and females had decreased plasma plant sterol levels and decreased intestinal cholesterol absorption. Compatible with the decreased plasma plant sterol phenotype, 14PKK mice had increased biliary plant sterol excretion, whereas 14DKK mice did not. Therefore, gender-dependent interactions of genes at the 14PKK and 14DKK intervals are likely to underlie the 14KK interval effect on plasma plant sterol levels and sterol absorption from the intestine. These studies confirm the plasma plant sterol locus on mouse chromosome 14 and provide evidence that there are at least two sets of genes operating: one set affecting intestinal sterol absorption and biliary excretion, and the other set mainly affecting intestinal sterol

An intercross between C57BL/6J and CASA/Rk mice was used to study the genetics of biliary bile acid composition. In parental strains, male C57BL/6J mice had significantly higher cholic acid (CA; 14%) and lower b-muricholic acid (bMC; 27%) than CASA/Rk mice, whereas females did not differ. However, quantitative trait locus analysis of F2 mice revealed no significant chromosome 9 loci in males but loci in females on chromosome 9 for percentage CA (%CA) at 72 centimorgan (cM) [logarithm of the odds (LOD) 5.89] and %bMC at 54 cM (LOD 4.09). Chromosome 9 congenic and subcongenic strains representing CASA/Rk intervals 38-73 cM (9KK) and 68-73 cM (9DKK) on the C57BL/6J background were made. In 9KK and 9DKK males, %CA was increased and %bMC was unchanged, whereas in 9KK but not 9DKK females, %CA was increased and %bMC was decreased. Sterol 12a-hydroxylase (Cyp8b1) channels bile acid precursors into CA and maps at chromosome 9 (73 cM). However, there was no significant difference in Cyp8b1 mRNA or enzymatic activity between parental mice, parental-congenic-subcongenic mice, or highlow biliary %CA F2 mice. In summary, two chromosome 9 loci control sexually dimorphic effects on biliary bile acid composition: a distal (68-73 cM) major determinant in males, and a more proximal (38-68 cM) major determinant in females. In this intercross, Cyp8b1, a strong candidate, does not appear to be responsible. In humans and mice, biliary bile acid composition affects the enterohepatic metabolism of lipids, including the synthesis and transport of bile acids across hepatocytes, the excretion of biliary lipids, and the absorption of sterols from the intestines (1-6). In humans, the two major primary bile acids are chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), a dihydroxy bile acid, and cholic acid (CA), a trihydroxy bile acid. The difference between them is hydroxylation of the 12 carbon of the sterol ring, which is carried out by the enzyme sterol 12a-hydroxylase (CYP8B1). As a result, CDCA is more hydrophobic and CA is more hydrophilic. In mice, CA is one of the major primary bile acids; it is formed by CYP8B1-mediated 12 hydroxylation. Muricholic acids comprise the other major murine bile acids, and they are formed from CDCA by 6 hydroxylation and 7 epimerization to generate a-and b-muricholic acid (bMC), with bMC predominating. bMC is even more hydrophilic than CA. Although the mouse does not have CDCA as a major species, it is possible to use this model to identify genes that influence the 12 hydroxylation pathway and uptake of bile acids from the intestines by studying the proportions of CA and bMC in bile. Identifying the genes that influence 12 hydroxylation and bile acid uptake from the intestines is particularly important because they determine the proportions of CA and CDCA and hence the hydrophobicity of the bile acid pool in humans.In humans, the proportions of CA and CDCA vary between individuals (7, 8), and there is some evidence for genetic control. For example, studies in monozygotic and dizygotic twins found a significant pair-...