The Effect of Unconjugated Bilirubin and Some Bilirubin Precursors on Cell Culture

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Abstract
The authors have studied the morphological changes induced by bilirubin, biliverdin, hemoglobin and hemin on HeLa, HEp-2 and HA cell cultures. Since bilirubin uncouples oxidative phosphorylation, the ‘unphysiological’ compound 2–4-dinitrophenol, a powerful uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, was also tested. Bilirubin and DNP induce slight morphological changes in cell cultures and their effects are similar. Hemoglobin and hemin do not cause any noticeable changes in these cell types. By contrast, biliverdin is highly toxic and causes rapid vacuolar degeneration, cytoplasmic shrinkage and, finally, cell death. Our results are discussed and compared with those obtained in other laboratories.

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