Connective Tissue (Grace) Flashcards
Name 4 important functions of connective tissue
•Connect epithelium to the rest of the body (basal lamina)
•Provide structure (bone)
•Store energy (fat)
•Transport materials (blood)
*Have no contact with environment*
Characteristic components of connective tissue include: (3)
- Specialized cells
- Solid extracellular protein fibers
- Fluid extracellular ground substance
What structure:
– makes up the majority of cell volume
– determines specialized function
the cell matrix
3 classifications of CT are:
(name & function)
•Connective tissue proper:
–connect and protect
•Fluid connective tissues:
–transport
•Supportive connective tissues:
–structural strength
What type of CT is this?
What are its subcategories (2)?
CT Proper
•Loose connective tissue:
–more ground substance, less fibers
–e.g., fat (adipose tissue)
•Dense connective tissue:
–more fibers, less ground substance
–e.g., tendons
8 Cell Types of
Connective Tissue Proper are:
- Fibroblasts
- Macrophages
- Adipocytes
- Mesenchymal cells
- Melanocytes
- Mast cells
- Lymphocytes
- Microphages
Fibroblasts
(most abundant cell type)
- In what type of CT are they found?
- what do they secrete?
–found in all connective tissue proper
–secrete proteins and hyaluronan (cellular cement)
Macrophages
- size/shape?
- involved in what system?
- main function?
- Fixed vs. Free?
- Large, amoeba-like cells
- function in the immune system
- function: eat pathogens and damaged cells
- Fixed macrophages stay in tissue vs. Free macrophages migrate
Adipocytes
- cell type?
- function?
- fat cells
- each cell stores a single, large fat droplet
Mesenchymal Cells
- type of cell?
- responds to?
- differentiates into?
- main functions?
- Stem cells
- respond to injury or infection
- differentiate into: fibroblasts, macrophages, etc.
- repair tissues, regeneration, differentiation
Melanocytes
function?
•Synthesize and store the brown pigment melanin
Mast Cells
- stimulate?
- releases?
- mast cells carried by blood are called?
- Stimulate inflammation after injury or infection
- release histamine and heparin (immunoresponse)
- Basophils
Which of the following is NOT a fiber found in connective tissue?
a. Collagen fiber
b. Elastic fiber
c. Reticular fiber
d. Purkinje fiber
e. All of the above are fibers found in connective tissue
Answer: d
Purkinje fibers are seen in the heart. Purkinje fibers are specialized muscle fibers.
- Which of the following can be classified as “embryonic connective tissue”?
a. Cartilage
b. Mucous connective tissue
d. Adipose tissue
d. Bone
e. Blood
Answer: b
Embryonic connective tissue includes mesenchyme and mucous connective tissue.
- What type of adipose tissue tends to increase as humans age?
a. Brown adipose tissue
b. White adipose tissue
c. Unilocular adipose tissue
d. Multilocular adipose tissue
e. Both b and c
Answer: e
Brown adipose tissue is multilocular adipose tissue. This is present during fetal development and then decreases after birth.
White adipose tissue is unilocular adipose tissue. This type of tissue persists into adulthood.