A study of ultrastructural alterations in experimental non-A, non-B hepatitis by electron-beam analysis.

An electron-beam X-ray microanalysis was carried out on sections of liver biopsy specimens obtained from chimpanzees infected with non-A, non-B hepatitis. The microanalysis was concentrated over areas where typical derangement of the endoplasmic reticulum, with the formation of tubular forms possessing walls with electron-dense central membrane, was visualized. These tubular structures are regarded as the most notable pathological alteration in affected hepatocytes. However, the electron-probe microanalysis showed no deviation of the energy spectrum when compared with the background or control analysis.