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The main liver cells are called hepatocytes; however, there are other cells that can be observed in a liver sample such as Kupffer cells (macrophages). [2] The liver is the biggest gland of the body. It has a wide variety of functions that range from the destruction of old blood cells to the control of the whole metabolism of macromolecules. [3]
Glycogen is an important energy source of the cell; therefore, it will be available on demand. The enzymes responsible for glycogenolysis degrade glycogen into individual molecules of glucose and can be utilized by multiple organs of the body. [4] [2] Lipids: Lipids, which are stored as triglycerides, are the common form of inclusions.
In normal liver, stellate cells are described as being in a quiescent state. Quiescent stellate cells represent 5-8% of the total number of liver cells. [4] Each cell has several long cytoplasmic protrusions that extend from the cell body and wrap around the sinusoids. [5] The lipid droplets in the cell body store vitamin A as retinyl palmitate ...
The glucose cycle can occur in liver cells due to a liver specific enzyme glucose-6-phosphatase, which catalyse the dephosphorylation of glucose 6-phosphate back to glucose. Glucose-6-phosphate is the product of glycogenolysis or gluconeogenesis , where the goal is to increase free glucose in the blood due body being in catabolic state.
In vitro model systems based on hepatocytes have been of great help to better understand the role of hepatocytes in (patho)physiological processes of the liver. In addition, pharmaceutical industry has heavily relied on the use of hepatocytes in suspension or culture to explore mechanisms of drug metabolism and even predict in vivo drug metabolism.
The function of liver glycogen is to maintain glucose homeostasis, generating glucose via glycogenolysis to compensate for the decrease of glucose levels that can occur between meals. Thanks to the presence of the glucose-6-phosphatase enzyme, the hepatocytes are capable of turning glycogen to glucose, releasing it into blood to prevent ...
Gut bacteria, bacterial endotoxins, and microbial debris transported to the liver from the gastrointestinal tract via the portal vein will first come in contact with Kupffer cells, the first immune cells in the liver. It is because of this that any change to Kupffer cell functions can be connected to various liver diseases such as alcoholic ...
A view of the atomic structure of a single branched strand of glucose units in a glycogen molecule. Glycogen (black granules) in spermatozoa of a flatworm; transmission electron microscopy, scale: 0.3 μm. Glycogen is a multibranched polysaccharide of glucose that serves as a form of energy storage in animals, [2] fungi, and bacteria. [3]