Figure 1. Experimental data for liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy in rats.

A Total liver mass grows back to its original individual size after partial hepatectomy. Depicted is the time course of liver mass regeneration after partial hepatectomy as the relative fraction of remnant liver mass (fraction starting liver mass) at different postoperative days (POD). B Kinetic of proliferation demonstrates a peak on first postoperative day (POD). Depicted is the proliferating index (PI) for the remaining liver lobules after 70% partial hepatectomy. C Liver lobules enlarge after partial hepatectomy [30]. Depicted is the retrograde filling of the hepatic sinusoids through the central veins with green fluorescent resin. The lobular borders are shown in red. (left) Liver lobular structure in control rat. (right) Liver lobular structure at four days after partial hepatectomy in rats (identical scale left and right).