Hepatic Sinusoidal Endothelial Cells (HSEC)

The sinusoids are positioned between hepatocyte plates, and they initiate at the portal tract and terminate at the central vein. Sinusoids carry blood that converges in the liver from the portal venous supply as well as from the hepatic artery. Sinusoids are separated from adjacent hepatocytes by the perisinusoidal space of Disse.

Hepatic sinusoidal endothelial cells (HSEC) are a morphologically distinct population of cells that form the lining of liver sinusoids. Features that distinguish HSEC from endothelial cells present in other organs and in larger liver vessels are the presence of multiple fenestrae throughout the cells and the lack of an underlying basement membrane. HSECs are the first cells that are in contact with blood flow into the sinusoids and serve to compartmentalize the vascular sinusoidal channels from the hepatic parenchyma.