BODY TISSUES

P.J. Okoth

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LEARNING OUTCOMES
 Define a body tissue
 Identify the four basic types of tissues that
form the body
 Describe each of the four tissues plus their
subdivisions
 State the locations of these tissues in the
body
 State the basic function of each body tissue

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BODY TISSUES
 A body tissue is a group of cells identical in
structure and function and held together by
intercellular matrix.
 They function together as a unit.

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CLASSIFICATION
 Tissues of the body are classified
according to the size, shape and
functions of the cells.
 There are four main types of body
tissue:
Epithelialtissue
Connective tissue
Muscle tissue
Nervous tissue
 Each of these tissues has subdivisions.
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BODY TISSUES

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CLASSIFICATION …
Epithelial tissue
 Can be simple or compound
 Simple epithelium includes:
 Squamous
 Columnar
 Cuboidal
 Ciliated columnar
 Compound epithelium can be transitional or
stratified
 Stratified epithelium is divided into:
 Keratinized
 Non-keratinized

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CLASSIFICATION …
Connective tissues
 Further sub-classified into:
 Areolar tissue
 Adipose tissue
 White fibrous tissue
 Yellow elastic tissue
 Lymphoid tissue
 Blood
 Cartilage
 Hyaline
 White fibrocartilage
 Yellow (elastic) fibrocartilage
 Bone
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CLASSIFICATION …
Muscle tissue
 There are three types of muscle tissue:
 Striatedmuscle
 Smooth muscle
 Cardiac muscle

Nervous tissue
 Divided into:
 Neurones
 Neuroglia

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EPITHELIAL TISSUE

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Describe epithelial tissue
 Describe the characteristics of epithelia
 Describe each of the types of epithelial cells
 State the locations of these epithelial tissues
in the body
 State the basic function of epithelial tissue

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 EPITHELIAL TISSUE
 Is made of cells arranged in a continuous
sheet with one or more layers.
 The term epithelium is applied to the
layer or layers of cells covering body
surfaces.
 It includes the cellular covering of the
body’s exterior surface and of all the body
cavities opening onto it.

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EPITHELIAL TISSUE…
 Because the tissues form coverings and linings,
the cells have one free surface that is not in
contact with other cells.
 Opposite the free surface, the cells are
attached to underlying connective tissue by a
non-cellular basement membrane.
Has apical & basal surfaces
A basement membrane is the attachment
between the basal surface of the cell & the
underlying connective tissue.
 This membrane is a mixture of carbohydrates
and proteins secreted by the epithelial and
connective tissue cells.
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EPITHELIAL TISSUE…
 Epithelia are derived from
three germ layers:

Ectoderm

Endoderm

Mesoderm

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EPITHELIAL TISSUE …
 Ectoderm
 Gives rise to epidermis, glandular tissue of breast,
cornea and junctional zones of the buccal cavity and
anal canal.
 Endoderm
 Forms the epithelial lining of the alimentary canal

and its glands, most of the respiratory tract and distal

parts of the urogenital tract.
 Mesoderm
 Gives rise to the epithelium-like layers lining the

proximal part of the urogenital tract and internal

cavities.
 They are known as mesothelia when they line the

pericardial, pleural and peritoneal cavities, and as

endothelia when they line blood vessels and
lymphatics.
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CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITHELIA
 Epithelia are predominantly cellular
 The cells are closely packed together
with minimal matrix (little
intercellular substance)
 Intercellular junctions are usually
numerous
 The basal surface of an epithelium lies
on a thin layer of basement
membrane, an inert connective tissue.

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CHARACTERISTICS OF EPITHELIA…
 Epithelia can regenerate when injured
 Blood vessels do not penetrate
epithelia.
 Diffusion
from capillaries of
neighbouring tissues provide nutrition.
 Epithelial tissue whose surface is
moistened by mucous glands is called
a mucous membrane or mucosa.
 The more active the tissue, the taller
are the cells.
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 Epithelial tissue

SIMPLE EPITHELIUM

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SIMPLE EPITHELIUM
 Also called unilaminar epithelium
 Consists of a single layer of cells
 Divided into 4 types according to the
shape of cells:
1. Squamous / pavement epithelium
2. Cuboidal epithelium
3. Columnar epithelium
4. Ciliated epithelium

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SQUAMOUS/PAVEMENT EPITHELIUM
 Composed of a layer of flattened,
interlocking, polygonal cells (squames).
 They fit closely together like flat stones
(pavement)
 They form a very smooth membrane
 The cytoplasm is so thin and the nucleus
usually bulges into the overlying space.
 Squamous epithelium lines:
 The heart
 Blood vessels
 Lymph vessels
 Alveoli of the lungs

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SQUAMOUS EPITHELIUM…
 Simple squamous epithelium is
found lining areas where passive
diffusion of gases occur.
 This includes:
the walls of capillaries
the linings of the alveoli of the
lungs
the linings of the pericardial,
pleural, and peritoneal cavities.
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CUBOIDAL EPITHELIUM
 Cuboidal epithelium has cells whose
height and width are approximately the
same (cube shaped).
 The cube shaped cells fit closely
together, and lie on a basement
membrane.
 Are involved in secretion, absorption
and excretion
 Forms the renal tubules and some
glands
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COLUMNAR EPITHELIUM
 Columnar epithelium has cells taller than
they are wide (column shaped)
 The cells are cylindrical (column), elongated
cubes and lie on a basement membrane.
 Their long axis is at right angles to the
basement membrane.
 Columnar epithelium lines organs of the
alimentary tract (e.g. small intestine) and
biliary tract (e.g. gall bladder).
 Some absorb the products of digestion, and
some secrete mucus (goblet cells)
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CILIATED EPITHELIUM
 Formed by cells which have fine, hair-like
processes called cilia on their free
surface.
 Wave-like movement of cilia propels
contents of lined tubes in one direction
only.
 They line the respiratory passages and
uterine tubes.
 Propel mucus towards throat
 Propel ova towards uterus

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PSEUDOSTRATIFIED EPITHELIUM
 When cells of an epithelial tissue are all anchored
to the basement Membrane but not all cells reach
the apical surface.
 When taller simple epithelial cells (e.g. columnar)
are viewed in cross section with several nuclei
appearing at different heights, they can be
confused with stratified epithelia. This kind of
epithelium is therefore described as
"pseudostratified" epithelium.
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STRATIFIED EPITHELIUM

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STRATIFIED (COMPOUND)
EPITHELIUM
 Consists of two or more (several) layers of
cells
 Superficial layers grow up from below
 Has no basement membrane
 Found on surfaces subjected to
mechanical wear and tear.
 Can have stratified squamous epithelium,
stratified cuboidal epithelium and also
transitional epithelium.

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STRATIFIED SQUAMOUS
EPITHELIUM
 Has layers of cells of different
shapes
 Deepest layers mainly columnar or
cuboidal
 Superficial layers are flattened
 Stratified epithelium consists of two
types:
Non-keratinized stratified epithelium
Keratinized stratified epithelium

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NON-KERATINIZED STRATIFIED
EPITHELIUM
 Found on wet surfaces that may be subjected
to wear and tear, e.g.
 Conjunctiva of eye
 Lining of mouth
 Lining of pharynx
 Lining of the oesophagus
 Vagina
 Distal uterine cervix
 Distal urethra
 They retain their nuclei until they
desquamate at the surface.
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KERATINIZED STRATIFIED
EPITHELIUM
 Consists of surface layers of dead cells that
give protection to and prevent drying of the
cells in deeper layers.
 The dead epithelial cells contain the protein
keratin which forms a tough, relatively
water-proof protective layer.
 Found on dry surfaces like:
 Skin
 Hair
 Nails

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 KERATINIZED STRATIFIED
EPITHELIUM
 Also found in the mucocutaneous junctions
of:
 the lips,
 nostrils,
 distal anal canal,
 the outer surface of the tympanic membrane.
 Also, surfaces subjected to high levels of
abrasion like:
 gingivae,
 hard palate and
 anterior dorsal tongue.

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TRANSITIONAL EPITHELIUM
 Composed of several layers of pear-shaped
cells.
 Transitional epithelium appears to be 4-6
cells thick and lines organs which undergo
considerable distension and contraction.
 It can therefore stretch greatly without
losing its integrity.
 In stretching, the cells become flattened,
without altering their positions relative to
each other.

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TRANSITIONAL EPITHELIUM
 Transitional epithelium lines the:
 Ureters
 Urinarybladder
 Renal pelvis
 Proximal portion of the urethra
 Cell turnover is normally very slow, cell
division being restricted to the basal layer,
and infrequent.
 When damaged, however, the epithelium
regenerates quite rapidly.

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TYPES OF EPITHELIUM

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TYPES OF EPITHELIUM…

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 GLANDULAR TISSUE
Glands may be broadly divided into:
 Exocrine glands
 Secrete on to surfaces continuous with the body’s
exterior, including the alimentary tract, respiratory
system, urinary and genital ducts and the skin.
 Endocrine glands (ductless glands)
 Secretehormones directly into the circulatory
system which conveys their secretions throughout
the body to affect the activities of other cells.
 Paracrine gland cells
 Aresimilar to endocrine cells, but their secretions
diffuse locally to cellular targets in their
immediate vicinity.
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FUNCTIONS OF EPITHELIAL TISSUE
 Epithelial tissue is found widespread throughout
the body, forming the covering of all body
surfaces, line body cavities and hollow organs,
and are the major tissue in glands.
 Epithelial Tissues perform a variety of functions
that include:
 protection,
 secretion,
 absorption,
 excretion,
 filtration,
 diffusion, and
 sensory reception.
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SUMMARY

 Define a body tissue

 Identify the four basic types of tissues that
form the body
 Describe each of the types of epithelial cells
 State the locations of these epithelial tissues
in the body
 State the basic function of epithelial tissue

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THE END!
Thank you.

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