Dilatation of sinusoidal capillary and swelling of sinusoidal fenestration in obesity: an ultrastructural study.

Obesity, which is one of the causes of the lifestyle-related disease, is a hepatopathic exacerbation factor that causes a chronic hepatic disorder. In this study, we examined the pathological changes in the liver in mice with obesity induced by monosodium glutamate administration. Pathological analysis revealed the deposition of many lipid droplets in hepatocytes and sinusoidal dilatation in obese mice. Scanning electron microscopic analysis revealed the presence of sinusoidal dilatation, and the fenestrations of the sinusoid were significantly swollen in obese mice. These results suggest that a dysfunction of the sinusoidal endothelium occurs in chronic obesity.