Liver

The liver is the largest bodily gland in some animals, located on the top right side of the abdomen. It is the main chemical "factory" of the body, used for synthesizing body chemicals, degrading toxins and chemical storage.

Structure of the liver

• hepatocyte[?]
• dual blood flow
  • portal vein and its dependants
  • hepatic artery[?] and its dependants
• bile outflow common bile duct[?] -> Vater's papilla

Function of the liver

• produces and excretes bile into the duodenum that is required for food digestion
• a role in carbohydrate metabolism :
  1. break down insulin and other hormones
  2. 'gluconeogenesis' (the formation of glucose out of proteins)
  3. 'glycogenolysis[?]' (the formation of glucose out of glycogen)
  4. 'glycogenosynthesis[?]' (the formation of glycogen out of glucose)
• a role in lipid metabolism:
  1. cholesterol synthesis
  2. production of triglicerides[?]
• protein metabolism:
  1. gluconeogenesis
  2. production of coagulation factors (I (fibrinogen) III V VII IX and XI)
• neutralization toxins, most medicinal products and hemoglobin
• convesion ammonia into urea
• storage of a multitude of substances, including, but not limited to vitamin B12, iron, copper and glucose in the form of glycogen

Disorders of the liver

1. hepatic cirrhosis[?]
2. primary biliary cirrhosis[?]
3. viral hepatitis
4. hemochromatosis
5. hepatic cancer (primary hepatocellular carcinoma or cholangiocarcinoma[?] and metastatic)
6. Wilson disease

Liver transplantation

Damaged livers often regenerate on their own. When they do not, the nonfunctioning liver can be surgically replaced. Livers for transplant[?] can be taken either from new cadavers or from live donors. In the latter case, the donor has surgery to remove part of his or her liver, which is transplanted into the recipient. Normally, each half regenerates into a complete, functional liver. (There have been rare cases of the donors dying shortly after the surgery.)

External links

• WikiLiver: A Wiki dedicated to the liver (http://mathis.heydtmann.de/WikiLiver)

Questions:

• which animals have liver ? (mammals ? vertebrates ?)
• in which animals it is located "on the top right side of the abdomen" ?