Adaptations to Cell Injury Flashcards
What is hypertrophy?
Hypertrophy is the increase in the size of cells and consequently an increase in the size of the organ.
It can be physiological or pathological.
What is hypertrophy caused by?
It is caused either by increased functional demand or specific hormonal stimulation.
What are two examples of physiologic hypertrophy?
During pregnancy, physiological hypertrophy is expressed in the uterine cells.
Physiological hypertrophy can also be seen in the thickness of the left ventricular walls in the heart due to the increased pressure or increased exercise.
What is hyperplasia?
Hyperplasia is the increase in the number of cells in an organ. It can be physiological or pathological.
What are the two reasons for physiological hyperplasia?
Physiological hyperplasia can be either hormonal or compensatory.
What is pathological hyperplasia usually the result of?
Pathological hyperplasia is usually due to excessive hormonal or growth factor stimulation.
Give a well-known example of pathological hyperplasia.
Cancer.
What is metaplasia?
Metaplasia is a reversible change in which one adult cell type is replaced by another. It can be physiological or pathological.
It is often caused by a change in pH.
What is Barrett’s Oesophagus?
Barrett’s Oesophagus is a pathological condition often caused by acid reflux which turns squamous epithelium and turns into columnar epithelium.
What is dysplasia?
Dysplasia is the precancerous cells which show the genetic and cytological features of malignancy but are not invading the underlying tissue.
Dysplasia can be associated with pathological metaplasia.
What are the two main light microscopic changes associated with cell injury?
Fatty change and or cellular swelling.
Alcohol can cause both fatty liver disease and also ballooning degeneration.
What is necrosis?
Necrosis is confluent cell death associated with inflammation.
What are the four main types of necrosis?
Coagulative necrosis
Liquefactive necrosis
Caseous necrosis
Fat necrosis
What happens in coagulative necrosis?
Cells become solid.
What happens in liquefactive necrosis?
Cells become liquified, common in the brain where there is little structural connective tissue.
