Liver: Acinus Model
Acinus Model
- Focuses on the direction of oxygenated blood from the hepatic artery branches.
- The area of the acinus lobule is determined by the afferent vascular supply.
This model is of physiological significance because we can infer that the hepatocytes closest to the portal triad (zone I) receive relatively more oxygen and solutes than those closer to the central vein (zone III). Consequently, enzymes are preferentially expressed according to the specific microenvironments.