Hepatic portal system vena cava (thus bypassing the liver). Blood flow to the liver is unique in that it receives both oxygenated and (partially) deoxygenated blood. As a result, the partial gas pressure of oxygen (pO) and perfusion pressure of portal blood are lower than in other organs of the body. Blood passes from branches of the portal vein through cavities between "plates" of hepatocytes called sinusoids. Blood also flows from branches of the hepatic artery and mixes in the sinusoids to supply the hepatocytes with oxygen. This mixture percolates through the sinusoids and collects in a central vein which drains into the
Collateral adjective Collateral adjective A collateral adjective is an adjective that is identified with a particular noun in meaning, but that is not derived from that noun. For example, the word "bovine" is considered the adjectival equivalent of the noun "cow", but it is derived from a different word, which happens to be the Latin word for "cow". Similarly, "lunar" serves as an adjective to describe attributes of the Moon; "moon" comes from Old English "mōna" "moon" and "lunar" from Latin "luna" "moon". The adjective "thermal" and the noun "heat" have a similar semantic relationship. As in these examples, the collateral adjective