Figure 1.

(A) Three-dimensional projection of arrangement of hexagonal hepatocytes in liver plates illustrating the position of bile canaliculi which form a “chicken wire” mesh of interconnecting conduits of the primary secretion of bile. (B) Adjoining hepatocytes illustrating the location of the bile canaliculus (b.c.), intercellular space (i.c.), Disse’s space (d.s.), and fenestrated endothelial lining cells and Kupffer cells (k.c.). Tight junctions seal the lumen of the bile canaliculus (t.j.) whose luminal membrane is surrounded by microfilaments (m.f.) and other cytoskeletal elements that provide a contractile mechanism for canalicular peristalsis. Golgi apparatus (g.a.) and rough endoplasmic reticulum (r.e.r) are also illustrated. Reprinted, with permission, from Ref. (71).