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The ultrastructure of spiralled collagen in liver fibrosis

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Abstract

An ultrastructural study was performed using oölong tea polyphenols for staining liver tissue from 5 patients with acute hepatitis, 20 patients with chronic hepatitis, and 5 patients with alcoholic liver disease. Spiralled collagen was seen in the region of the portal tract in all of the patients, but not in the periportal region, perisinusoidal region, or sinusoidal wall. The amount of spiralled collagen relative to the total amount of collagen fibrils was greater in patients with hepatitis than in those with alcoholic liver disease. The occurrence of spiralled collagen appears to be a degenerative phenomenon as indicated by observations of its three-dimensional structure.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Central Institute for Electron Microscopic Researches, Nippon Medical School, 1-1-5, Sendagi, Bunkyo-ku, 113, Tokyo, Japan

    Shigeru Sato & Akiko Adachi

  2. The first Department of Internal Medicine, Nippon Medical School, 1-1-5, Sendagi, Bunkyo-ku, 113, Tokyo, Japan

    Katsuaki Satomura

Authors
  1. Shigeru Sato
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  2. Akiko Adachi
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  3. Katsuaki Satomura
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Sato, S., Adachi, A. & Satomura, K. The ultrastructure of spiralled collagen in liver fibrosis. Med Electron Microsc 29, 153–158 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02348069

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02348069

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