抄録
Hepatic cirrhosis is occurred due to slow, long-continued necrosis of th hepatic cells and their replacement by connective tissue. So, on account of inquiring biochemically into the course of occurrence and recovery of cirrhosis, it may be quite important to examine the quantitative as well as qualitative change of connective tissue elements. As generally accepted, collagenous fiber is mainly composed of collagen, containing some kinds of acid mucopolysaccharides as a cementing substance which is intimately concerned in the intermolecular crosslinking of collagen (1, 2). Recently, Jackson, Dunphy et al. (3, 4, 5) studied intensively on the connective tissue growth in wound healing from the viewpoints of biochemistry and histochemistry, and found that in this early stage comparative large amounts of sulfated polysaccharides (metachromatic substances) were appeared and fibroblasts secreted a soluble procollagenous substance which was led to fiber formation with the presence of a carbohydrate fraction in the ground substance. On the other hand, Morrione (6) recognized that the chemical values of collagen determined on rat liver showing cirrhosis was more or less in parallel with the extent of fibrosis, estimated on microscopic examination of liver section stained for reticulum. Hanashiro (7) in the author's institute found that the hydroxyproline content was an advisable and reliable indicator to evaluate the extent of deposition or disappearance of collagen in hepatic cirrhosis. Now in this present report, the authors intended to investigate the chemical change of collagen and acid mucopolysaccharide in cirrhosed hepatic tissue due to carbon tetrachloride toxicosis. As for the quantitative determination of these substances, the authors carried out the measurement of hydroxyproline and hexosamine which are the important components of collagen and mucopolysaccharide, respectively. Thus, the authors discussed on the pattern of changes in the nature of connective tissue in cirrhosis and observed quantitatively the effect of placental extraction-Neo Placenta Plasma or PP-B, prepared in this institute-on rat's carbon tetrachloride cirrhosis.
