Hepatic cellular development in the rabbit.
Cellular development of rabbit liver from late fetal life to adulthood was analysed by quantitative histology and chemical techniques. Hepatocytes and non-hepatocytes were described in number and size. Two thirds of the cells in fetal liver are non-hepatocytes but the volume fraction occupied by them is only 18%. Both number and volume fraction fall with advancing development. Hepatocyte cytoplasm doubles in late fetal life, falls in the 1st postnatal week and then increases to a maximum size in the adult. Perinatal changes in hepatocyte size are related to the accumulation and discharge of glycogen and lipid but also include changes in the protein concentration of the cell.
Aging↗