Aquaporins: Their role in cholestatic liver disease

Figure 3 Proposed contribution of hepatocyte AQP8 to the development of cholestasis. On the left a normal hepatocyte is illustrated with AQP8 expressed at the canalicular membrane domain and in intracellular vesicles. Bile is formed by the active secretion of solute transporters (ST) such as Bsep and Mrp2, which generate the osmotic driving forces for water transport through canalicular AQP8. On the right, a cholestatic hepatocyte is illustrated with decreased expression and functioning of ST. AQP8 is downregulated at the canalicular domain, which impairs the water osmotic permeability thus contributing to decreased bile formation.