The pre-operative period of donors with resuscitation, hypotension, transient organ ischemia, and mechanical ventilation creates the preconditions for injury to the liver and bile ducts. Both can get reflected in an altered bile composition. The aim of the study was to establish whether the composition of gallbladder bile in donors differs from that of healthy individuals. Methods: A total of 75 organ donors (51 males and 24 females), with a mean age of 32 years, were examined. The most common cause of death was skull injury. A control group comprised 28 persons without any hepatobiliary disease. The parameters evaluated in bile included bile acids (total and individual), cholesterol, total phospholipids, saturation index, total protein, mucin and nucleation time. Results: A pathologically shortened nucleation time was established in the bile of donors (14.5 ± 4.1 compared with 25.0 ± 3.0 days in control, p < 0.01). Bile saturation with cholesterol was only slightly elevated (1.03 ± 0.3 versus 0.72 ± 0.2 in control, p < 0.05). The levels of total protein (297 ± 49 versus 69 ± 13 mmol/1) and mucin (207,5 ± 32 versus 67 ± 15 mmol/1) were significantly elevated in donors, p < 0.01. Summary: A pathologically shortened nucleation time was established in the bile of donors. The main cause of it is rather the presence of pronucleation factors than supersaturation of the bile with cholesterol. This is indicated by the increased levels of total protein and mucin, a glycoprotein with pronucleation properties. The markedly pathological values of nucleation time suggests the possible role played by the preperation period of the donors in the increased production of a substance with pronucleation properties.

        Key words: bile composition – donors of organs for transplantation – saturation index – nucleation time