Phospholipase A(2) IIA (PLA(2)IIA), which plays a crucial role in arachidonic acid metabolism and in inflammation, is upregulated under various pathological conditions, including in the gallbladder and gallbladder bile from patients with multiple cholesterol gallstones, in the liver and kidney of rats with cirrhosis, as well as in the colonic tissue of animals treated with a chemical carcinogen.
Effects of UDC on secretory low-molecular-weight PLA2s as inflammatory mediators may relate to the reported efficacy of UDC treatment in cholesterol gallstone disease.