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MANUAL OF PHYSIOLOGY. 



spider's web. These are the lobular blood capillaries. The vessels 

 of this radiated capillary Detwork become larger as they unite 

 and converge to the centre of the lobule, where they open into 

 a central vein which lies in immediate apposition with the gland 

 cells. This vein is called the intralobular vein, and is the radicle 

 of the efferent or hepatic vein, which carries the blood of the 

 liver to the inferior vena cava. 



The ultimate ramifications of the hepatic artery can be traced 

 to various destinations. Some go to the walls of the accompanying 

 vein and duct, and to the connective tissue which surrounds these 



FIG. 73. 



Cellsof the Liver. One large mass shows the shapotliey assume by mutual 

 pressure. (a) The same free, when they become spheroid. (6) More mag- 

 nified, (c) During active digestion, containing refracting globules like fat. 



vessels. Many of the arterial capillaries unite with offshoots 

 from the interlobular venous plexus and thus reinforce the lob- 

 ular capillaries. Other branches form an iiiterlobular capillary 

 plexus, which flows into the interlobular branches of the vena 

 porta, together with those from the walls of the vein and duct. 



The blood flowing to the liver in the large vena porta and the 

 small hepatic artery, is thus conducted by those vessels to the 

 boundaries between the lobules (interlobular veins), and thence 

 streams through the converging lobular capillaries to the iutra- 



