The Liver

2% of body weight 1.5 litres of blood pass through it a minute Thats 2000 litres a day Supplied with blood via
Hepatic artery Hepatic portal vein

Hepatocytes Reticuloendothelial cell (Kupffer cell)

Functions of the Liver

Bile production
Salts emulsify fats, contain pigments as bilirubin

Storage
Glycogen, fat, vitamins, copper and iron

Nutrient interconversion Detoxification

Hepatocytes remove ammonia and convert to urea

Phagocytosis
Kupffer cells phagocytize worn-out and dying red and white blood cells, some bacteria

Synthesis
Albumins, fibrinogen, globulins, heparin, clotting factors

Liver Lobule
Sinusoids carry blood Bile Canaliculi carry bile Hepatocytes run in sheets, they have microvilli to increase the surface area for absorption and secretion The sinusoids are also lined with phagocytic Kupffer cells

Where do the two blood supplies mix?

Triads: Branches of three vessels: hepatic portal vein, hepatic artery, along with bile drainage ductiles all run together to infiltrate all parts of liver. Sinusoidsspecial liver capillaries where blood mixes and liver cells actby-products leave as bile in caniliculi which merge to form bile ducts 3. HISTOLOGY

Hepatic vein

Hepatic portal vein

Hepatocytes

Bile duct

Hepatic artery

Histology of the Liver

Histology of the Liver