Interphasic nucleolus organizer regions visualized by silver reaction in human hepatocytes.

To provide more information on the presence and number of nucleolar silver-stained granules (SSGs) representing interphasic nucleolus organizer regions (NORs) responsible for ribosomal RNA synthesis, these cells were studied in patients with various hepatic disorders such as chronic hepatitis and liver cirrhosis with or without characteristic signs of progress of the disease ("active" and "inactive" cirrhosis). In comparison with hepatocytes of histologically normal liver, an elevated number of nucleolar SSGs were noted in hepatocytes of patients with all the mentioned hepatic disorders, with maximal values in patients with "active" liver cirrhosis. These findings suggest a compensatory nucleolar biosynthetic activity in remaining or altered hepatocytes in studied liver disorders.