Connective Tissue Proper Lecture Sep 26 Flashcards
What are the three components of connective tissue proper?
cells
fibers
amorphous intercellular substance (ground substance)
What are some of the general characteristics of CT?
- there is abundant matrix (fibers and ground substance)
- the proportions of cell and intercellular substance vary considerably and form a basis of classification
What are the embryological origins of CT?
mesoderm —-> mesenchyme —> CT
What are the three types of fibers in CT?
- Collagenous fibers
- Reticular Fibers (type III collagen)
- Elastic fibers
In regards to collagenous fibers:
Diameter?
What are they comprised off?
What is their shape?
Are they elastic?
What will they form when placed in boiling water?
How do you stain collagenous fibers?
They are 1-2 micrometers in diameter
they are comprised of smaller fibrils
their shape is irregular and undulating
they are inelastic
they form gelatin in boiling water
To stain then, use acid dyes (eosinophilic or acidopilic)
In a little more detail, what are collagenous fibers comprised of?
They are comprised of smaller fibrils which are about .2 to .5 micrometers in diameter.
THese fibrils are held togehter by an amorphous material which is trypsin sensitive
They are aligned in parallel
How is collagen part of the basis of tanning process in the preparation of leather?
Collagen + heavy metals (or tannic acid) yields an insoluble product
What will a collagenous fiber look like under an electron microscope?
the fibrils can be resolved into microfils, which reveals a characteristic cross banding of about 640 nm plus characteristic intraband patterns
What is the chemical composition of collagenous fibers?
Collagen fibers are made from the macromolecule tropocollagen
Tropocollagen consists of three chains of polypeptides called alpha chains
the amino acids of the alpha chains will vary to produce different types of collagen
The alpha chains wrap around each other to form a triple helix held together by hydrogen bonds
The tropocollagen molecules are then polymerized into fibrils in the fibroblasts
THe fibrils then aggregate to form a collagen fiber
What accounts for the 640 nm spacing in collagen observed under electron microscopy?
the regular, staggered arrangement of tropocollagen molecules
Where are the 5 collages types located?
1: ordinary connective tissues (loose and dense) and bone
2: hyaline cartiage
3; loose CT, blood vessel walls; dermis; placenta
4: basement membranes
5: widespread
Where are collagent fibrils and fibers assembled?
in fibroblasts
What are reticular fibers made of?
type 3 collagen
Describe reticular fibers:
relative size?
how do they stain?
what do they form?
How are they different from other collagens?
They are relatively small
they tend to branch into fine networks
they stain with silver stains and PAS
they differ from other collagens in that they have more carbohydrates
How do reticular fibers look under electron microscopy?
THey are morphologically similar to collagen but have a smaller diameter
they exhibit 64 nm cross-banding
WHere are reticular fibers located?
Reticular fibers are sparse in adult loose CT
they are around muscle cells, nerves, and epithelial structures
they are around glandular organs
lymphatic tissues/organs but NOT the thymus
red bone marrow (hemopoietic tissue)
emryonic CT
Where do reticular fibers originate?
fibroblasts
reticular cells in lymphatic and hemopoietic tissues
Describe elastic fibers:
relative size?
what do they form?
what color are they in high concentrations
where are they fenestrated?
What will stain them?
THey are thinner than collagenous fibers
they may reach 10-12 mm in elastic ligaments
they branch and anastomose freely
they are highly refractile
they may be yellowish in high concentrations
they may be fenestreated in the arterial walls
they stain with orcein, resorcin-fuchsin, and aldehyde-fuchsin
What are the 4 most common amino acids in the alpha chains of tropocollagen?
glycine
proline
hydrosyproline
hydroxylysine
What is the most prevalent form of collagen?
type 1
which collagen type is prevalent in loose connective tissue?
type 3
where is type 2 cartilage located?
hyaline carilage
what collagen type is prevalent in the basement membranes
type 4
What do you need to stain reticular fibers? why does this work?
you can use silver stains and PAS
PAS will work because reticulr fibers are much more glycosylated than other collagens
What form of connective fibers are particularly common in the lymphatic system (just not the thymus)?
reticular fibers = type 3 collagen
Will you see elastic fibers on an H&E stain?
no.
you need something special: orcein, resorcin-fuchsin, aldehyde fuchsin
What are the two distinct components of elastic fibers?
fibrillin (the microfibrils)
elastin (in the amorphous component)
Will reticular fibers exhibit cross banding under microscopy?
Will elastic fibers?
reticular fibers will (remember, it’s collagen which is made from tropocollagen which causes the banding udner stain)
elastic fibers will not
What is the important capability of elastic fibers that collagen does not have?
elastic fibers can stretch to about 150% of the original length
What two amino acids are associated with elastic fibers that are not in collagen?
What do they do for the elastic fibers?
Desmosine and Isodesmosine
They are important in the extracellular polymerization of elastin and allow the fibers to stretch
What results from a gene defect in fibrillin?
Marfan’s syndrome - they think Abe Lincoln had this
they are usualy tall with long hands and feet.
They dont make fibrillin, which is important for the integrity of elastin fibers and sheets. They are particularly susceptible to aortic dissection
What fiber is damaged by prolonged sun exposure, leading to photoaged skin?
it results in extensive remodeling of fibrillin midrofibrils - they lose their elasticity
What are the origins of elastic fibers?
fibroblasts
AND
smooth muscle cells if there aren’t fibroblasts around
What are the 4 main chemical components of the amorphoud intercellular substance (ground substance)
- bound water
- glycosaminoglycans
- proteoglycans (and aggregates of)
- Structural multi-adhesive glycoproteins
The glycosaminoglycans in the gound substance come in two basic flavors which are?
non-sulfated and sulfated