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Liver regeneration following transplantation in ‘small for size’ conditions is not fully understood. We therefore evaluated the regenerative response of transplanted partial liver grafts in outbred rats without the use of immunosuppression and compared it to liver regeneration following resection. The transplanted livers showed enhanced regeneration compared to controls. We suggest that this is caused by activation of the immune system.

The regeneration of the liver following resection is regulated by a variety of factors and it might be expected that jaundice influences the process. We therefore evaluated the regenerative response to major hepatectomy in bile-obstructed rats. Two weeks after ligation of the common bile duct, a standardized 77% hepatectomy was undertaken. The jaundiced animals showed an augmented liver regeneration compared to nonjaundiced individuals (p < 0.01). However, blood clearance of radiolabelled Escherichia coli bacteria was impaired (p < 0.01) in animals with bile obstruction at 7 days after the hepatectomy, accompanied by reduced bacterial uptake in the liver as a sign of impaired reticuloendothelial system function.