Anatomy A215 Virtual Microscopy
Liver
 
 

Each lobe of the liver is divided into many lobules, each formed by radially arranged cords or plates of hepatocytes (liver cells). In this LIVER virtual slide, identify the following:
  • Lobule, roughly hexagonal in cross section.
  • Central vein, in the center of a lobule.
  • Hepatic triad (at each of a lobule’s corners) and its three components:
    • A branch of the hepatic portal vein.
    • A branch of the hepatic artery (often an arteriole).
    • A branch of the bile duct, lined by simple cuboidal epithelium.
    • Sinusoids, thin-walled vascular spaces draining toward the central vein.
    • Hepatocytes, the main cell type in the liver.

 

This image shows elements of a hepatic triad as well as heptocytes of a liver lobule.

 

Virtual Microscopy Table of Contents