Abstract
The author has studied histochemically the alteration of succinic dehydrogenase, cytochrome oxidase and lipids in the liver of rats from late fetal life to adult and has added the morphological researches of mitochondria. The results were as followed.
1. Succinic dehydrogenase of late fetal or newborn rats was generally slight in activity. The activity in the hepatic cells increased rapidly in the whole hepatic lobules and attained the maximal intensity at 7 days after dirth. The activity around the central vein showed a subsequent gradual decrease to reach normal reaction at 14 days of age. Negative reactions were observed in the wall of blood vessels, bile ducts and connective tissues throughout the development.
2. The activity of cytochrome oxidase exhibited the similar change to that of succinic dehydrogenase.
3. Lipids were examined histochemically by several tests, and were confirmed to be mainly composed of neutral fat.
4. Mitochondria exhibited a distinctive granular shape in the time, when the activities of both succinic dehydrogenase and cytochrome oxidase revealed the maximal activity.
