NERVES 333 



The course of the blood through the vessels of the liver will be 

 readily appreciated by reference to the following table which indi- 

 cates the succession of the hepatic blood-vessels : 



1. Portal vein. 1. Hepatic artery. 



2. Interlobular veins. 2. Interlobular arteries. 



3. Branches to lobule. 3. Vaginal branches and capil- 



laries in Glisson's capsule. 



4. Intralobular capillaries. 



5. Central vein (intralobular). 



6. Sublobular veins. 



7. Hepatic veins. 



8. Vena cava inferior. 



The three classes of veins, interlobular, central, and sublobular 

 are readily differentiated by the fact that the two latter lie alone, 

 while the interlobular veins are always in company with ducts or 

 arteries within the portal canals. Moreover the central vein has 

 almost no connective tissue wall until near its exit from the lob- 

 ule where it passes into the sublobular branches ; the sublobular 

 veins, on the other hand, possess a relatively thick connective 

 tissue wall and even some smooth muscle, except in the very 

 smallest, which are to be regarded as mere interlobular continua- 

 tions of central veins which soon unite to form the larger sublob- 

 ular vessels. 



LYMPHATICS. The lymphatics of the liver may be consid- 

 ered as consisting of a superficial set which supplies the hepatic 

 peritoneum and the capsule of the liver, 

 and which is continuous with a deeper set 

 in Glisson's capsule. The lymphatics of the 

 deep set begin as perivascular spaces within 

 the lobule, from which the lymph enters 

 larger lymphatic vessels in the interlobular 

 connective tissue, which follow the vessels 

 of the portal canals to their exit from the 

 liver; the larger lymphatics pass to the ab- Fl - 276. INTRALOBULAR 

 dominal lymphatic glands. Other lymphat- RABBIT'S*" 



ics follow the sublobular and hepatic veins a? hepatic cells ; J, 

 and pass to the mediastinal lymphatic glands, nerve fibre. Goigi stain. 



NERVES. The nerves of the liver are JSSidSlf" (Af " 

 mostly of the non-medullated variety. They 

 follow the portal canals and are distributed to the walls of the 

 blood vessels, the walls of the bile ducts, and to the capsule of the 



