Abstract
Summary
The existence of an exhaustible plasma factor operative in Kupffer cell phagocytosis of colloidal carbon gel was demonstrated in the isolated perfused rat liver. In liver pairs perfused in sequence with an identical blood pool, phagocytosis was minimal in the second preparation compared to the efficient clearance in the first. Neither colloidal thorium dioxide nor silicon dioxide administration to the first member of a perfusion pair affected carbon phagocytosis by the second preparation; carbon clearance was slight in livers perfused with a semi-synthetic medium lacking plasma. It is suggested that an assessment of phagocytic capacity of the rat for carbon should include consideration of such plasma factors.
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