Liver Pools

The liver is a multipurpose organ. It cleans toxins out of the blood, produces bile that helps with digestion, and helps to fight against infections, among hundreds of vital jobs. But putting itself in harm’s way comes at a price – prolonged exposure to toxins like alcohol can lead to damage and scar tissue called fibrosis. Here researchers zoom in on a mouse’s liver with an advanced microscope, first rendering the tissue semi-transparent by clearing away chemicals that block their view. Using fluorescent particles that settle in different structures like the bile duct (green) and hepatic vein (yellow), the team spot places where the green particles 'leak' and pool in the surrounding tissue. These newly discovered structures, which they call the periportal lamellar complex, may be involved in changes to the liver tissue during fibrosis and a future target for medical drugs.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image from work by Tongtong Xu, Fujun Cao & Ruihan Zhou, and colleagues
• State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy and Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, and Collaborative Innovation Center for Biotherapy, Chengdu, China
• Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in eLife (reviewed preprint), January 2026