THE LIVER LIPIDS AND THEIR DISTRIBUTION IN DISEASE. AN ANALYSIS OF 60 HUMAN LIVERS 1

The lipid distribution in normal human livers and in cases of cirrhosis and fatty infiltration of the liver was reported in a previous study (1). As a corollary to these observations, the livers of patients dying from other diseases were analyzed for their lipid content and distribution. The ques-tion as to whether diseases other than those di-rectly affecting the liver may alter the lipid content and its distribution in the liver is of interest be-cause the functions of the liver are so varied that it tends to be involved in almost any profound dis-turbance in the body. The clinical methods available for determining the function of the liver in relation to fat are limited. At present, the most satisfactory index of a lipid disturbance is the ratio of free to total cholesterol in the plasma. This is altered in cir-rhosis, fatty infiltration of the liver, and in par-enchymatous liver disease (2), but this ratio does not give information as to the total lipid content of the liver, or the other lipid fractions. The determinations that we are reporting were made to ascertain the changes that might occur in the liver lipids in diseases other than those di-rectly affecting the liver. These values are com-pared to the normal liver lipid values obtained by analysis from a group of 25 normal subjects re-ported in the previous study (1). The average total liver lipid for this group of normals was 4.98 grams per 100 grams of wet liver. The range was from 2.42 to 8.41 grams per cent. The average fatty acids were 3.50 grams per cent, the average phospholipids 2.08 grams per cent, and the average neutral fat 2.26 grams per cent; the average total cholesterol was 283 mgm. per cent and the average free cholesterol 204 mgm. per cent. Liver samples were obtained in almost all of the cases within 24 hours after death. As re