Tissues
A&P-I
Unit-III
Muhammad Iqbal
Lecturer
KMU
Terminology
• Tissues are groups of cells with a common
structure and function.
• There are four main tissues in the body –
epithelial, muscle, connective, and nervous tissue.
• Parenchyma: The functional part of a tissue.
• Stroma: The supporting tissue or matrix of an organ as
opposed to the parenchyma.
I. EPITHELIUM (EPITHELIAL TISSUE)
• Tissue composed of layers of closely spaced cells
that cover organ surfaces, form glands, and serve
for protection, secretion, and absorption.
• Functions:
• 1) Protection— skin
• 2) Absorption – stomach and intestinal lining
• 3) Filtration – kidneys
• 4) Secretion – glands
Epithelial Tissue cont…
Characteristics:
• Closely attached to each other forming a protective
barrier.
• Always has one free (apical) surface open to outside
the body or inside (cavity) an internal organ.
• Always have one fixed (basal) section attached to
underlying connective tissue.
• Has no blood vessels but can soak up nutrients from
blood vessels in connective tissue underneath.
• Innervated by a lot of nerves.
• Very good at regenerating.
Epithelial Tissue cont…
Classification (types):
1) By shape:
a) squamous –flat and scale-like
b) cuboidal –as tall as they are wide
c) columnar –tall, column-shaped
2) By arrangement:
a) simple epithelium - single layer of cells (usually
for absorption and filtration)
b) stratified epithelium - stacked up cell layers
(protection from abrasion --- mouth, skin, and
Permits expansion as in bladder).
Kidney tubules, glands, lining of terminal bronchioles, etc.
Glands, bronchioles, stomach, intestines, bile ducts, etc.
Goblet schematic diagram
Mouth, throat, esophagus, urethra, skin (keratinized)
Sweat gland ducts, salivary gland ducts, etc.
Mammary gland ducts, larynx, urethra (males)
II. CONNECTIVE TISSUE
Tissue with more matrix than cell volume, specialized to
support, bind together, and protect organs.
Functions:
1) Wraps around and cushions and protects organs
2) Stores nutrients
3) Support for visceral organs
4) Blood transports nutrients, hormones, gases, waste
4) As tendon and ligaments they protect joints and
attach muscles to bone and usually bone to bone
respectively.
Components of Connective Tissue
1) Cells
2) Extracellular Matrix
--Ground substance – gel around cells, and fibers.
Components of Connective Tissue
Cells: Cells of fibrous connective tissue include the
following types:
• Fibroblasts: Large flat cells that often appear tapered at
both ends and show slender branches. They produce fibers
and ground substance that form the marix of the tissue
• The inactive fibroblasts are also known as fibrocytes by
some histologists.
• Leukocytes:
• Macrophages:
• Plasma cells:
• Mast cells: Found in blood vessels, secrete histamine and
heparin
• Adepocytes: Large rounded cells filled with triglyceride.
Components of Connective Tissue
Fibers: Three types of protein fibers are:
• i- Collagenous Fibers:
• Made of collagen, tough and flexible, resist stretching.
• White in appearance
• Tendons and ligaments are made up of collagen
• ii- Reticular Fibers:
• Thin collagen fibers coated with glycoprotein.
• They form a sponge like framework of organs like spleen
and lymph nodes.
• iii- Elastic Fibers:
• Thin fibers made up of elastin protein.
• Stretch and recoil/spring back.
• They enable arteries and lungs to stretch and recoil.
Different types of Connective Tissue:
1) Loose Connective Tissue:
a) Areolar Connective Tissue – cushion around organs,
loose arrangement of cells and fibers.
e.g: Basement membranes, Visceral layers of
pericardium and pleura, fascia b/w muscles,
mesenteries, layer surrounding blood vessels
b) Adipose Tissue – storehouse for nutrients, packed
with cells and blood vessels.
e.g: subcutaneous fat, breast, heart surface,
surrounding organs like kidneys and eyes.
c) Reticular Connective Tissue – supporting framework
of organs, delicate network of fibers and cells.
e.g: Bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, thymus gland
Connective Tissue cont…
2) Dense Connective Tissue:
a) Dense Regular Connective Tissue – tendons and
ligaments, regularly arranged bundles packed with
fibers for strength in the same direction.
b) Dense Irregular Connective Tissue – Dermis,
organ capsules, irregularly arranged bundles
packed with fibers for strength in all directions.
Connective Tissue cont…
3. SPECIAL CONNECTIVE TISSUES
i) Cartilage
Functions:
i) provides strength with flexibility while resisting wear, i.e.
external ear, larynx, etc.
ii) cushions and shock absorbs where bones meet, i.e.
intervertebral discs, joint capsules
ii) Bone
Functions:
i) provides framework and strength for body
ii) allows movement
iii) stores calcium
iv) contains blood-forming cells
Types of Collagen Fibers
• Collagen is the most abundant protein in the
human body, acting as the "glue" that holds
everything together.
• There are at least 28 known types, about 90% of
the collagen in your body consists of Types I, II,
and III.
Types of Collagen Fibers
• The Main Four Types of Collagen
• A simple way to remember the first four types is
the "S-C-A-B" mnemonic:
• S – Skin/Skeleton (Type I)
• C – Cartilage (Type II)
• A – Arteries/Anatomy of organs (Type III)
• B – Basement membrane (Type IV)
Types of Collagen Fibers
• Type I: The Steel Cable
• This is the strongest type of collagen. Its fibers are packed into
very tight, thick bundles.
• Location: Skin, tendons, bones, ligaments, and sclera of eyes.
• Function: Provides enormous tensile strength.
• Structure: Long, thick, unbranched fibers.
• Type II: The Shock Absorber
• These fibers are much finer and less organized than Type I,
allowing them to trap water and stay flexible.
• Location: Mainly in cartilages and the vitreous humor of the
eye.
• Function: To cushion joints and provide a smooth surface for
bones to glide against each other.
Types of Collagen Fibers
• Type III: The Scaffolding (Reticular)
• Often found alongside Type I, these fibers form a delicate, branch-like
mesh.
• Location: Walls of arteries, hollow organs (like intestine and uterus),
and the "stroma" (internal framework) of soft organs like the liver and
spleen.
• Function: Provides a flexible structure for organs that need to expand
or contract. It is also the first collagen produced during wound healing.
• Structure: Thin, branched "reticular" fibers.
• Type IV: The Filter
• Unlike the others, Type IV doesn't form long fibers. Instead, it forms a
"sheet" or "mesh" that acts like a fence.
• Location: The basement membrane (the thin layer of tissue that
anchors skin cells to the layers below) and the filters in your kidneys.
• Function: Filtration and support. It allows the selective passage of
molecules from one tissue to another.
• Structure: A multi-layered network.
Summary of Collagen Fibers
Type Main Location Key Physical Property
High tensile strength
Type I Bone, Tendon, Skin
(Resistance to pull)
Pressure resistance (Shock
Type II Cartilage, Joints
absorption)
Blood vessels, Elasticity and internal
Type III
Organs framework
Basement
Type IV Filtration and anchoring
membrane
Connective Tissue cont….
3) Blood
Functions:
i) transports oxygen, carbon dioxide, and
nutrients around the body
ii) immune response
Muscle Tissues
• Muscle tissue is the engine of the human body. Its primary function is
to contract and generate force, allowing like pumping of blood
through your veins.
• Muscle tissue is categorized into three distinct types based on their
structure, function, and whether you have conscious control over
them.
• 1. Skeletal Muscle
• This is likely what you think of when you hear the word "muscle."
These are attached to your bones by tendons and are responsible for
all your external movements.
• Control: Voluntary
• Appearance: Striated (striped) under a microscope because of the
organized arrangement of protein fibers.
• Function: Body movement, posture, and heat generation.
• Key Feature: These muscles can contract rapidly and powerfully, but
they tire easily.
Muscle Tissues
• 2. Smooth Muscle
• Smooth muscle is found in the walls of hollow internal
organs like the stomach, intestines, bladder, and blood
vessels.
• Control: Involuntary (controlled by the autonomic nervous
system).
• Appearance: Non-striated. The cells are spindle-shaped
with a single central nucleus.
• Function: Moving substances through the body (like food
through the digestive tract or blood through arteries).
• Key Feature: They contract slowly and rhythmically,
allowing them to work for long periods without fatigue.
Muscle Tissues
• 3. Cardiac Muscle
• This is a highly specialized tissue found only in the
walls of the heart.
• Control: Involuntary. It has its own built-in pacemaker
to keep your heart beating.
• Appearance: Striated, but unlike skeletal muscle, the
fibers are branched and connected by intercalated
discs.
• Function: Pumping blood throughout the circulatory
system.
• Key Feature: These muscles never rest and are highly
resistant to fatigue.
Muscle Tissue
Muscle Tissue cont..
Cardiac Muscles
• The syncytium of cardiac muscle is important
because it allows rapid coordinated
contraction of muscles along their entire
length. ... Cardiac tissue is therefore described
as a functional syncytium, as opposed to the
true syncytium of skeletal muscle.
Comparison
Feature Skeletal Smooth Cardiac
Attached to Walls of hollow
Location Heart
bones organs
Control Voluntary Involuntary Involuntary
Striations Yes No Yes
Long,
Cell Shape Spindle-shaped Branched
cylindrical
Features of Muscles
Features Skeletal Cardiac Smooth
Shape Cylindrical , unbranched Branched Spindle, unbranched
Length 1—4 cm 80—100 50—200
Nucleus More than one one one
Striations present present absent
Myofibrils present present Absent
Sarcomere present present absent
Troponin present present Absent
Depolarization Upon stimulation Spontaneous Spontaneous
Tetanus Possible Not possible Not Possible
RMP Stable Stable Unstable
Ca++ binds with Troponin Troponin Calmodulin
Nerve supply Somatic Autonomic Autonomic
Control Neurogenic Myogenic Neurogenic and
Myogenic
Sarcoplasmic Organelles
• 1. Nuclei
• 2. Myofibrils
• 3. Golgi apparatus
• 4. Mitochondria
• 5. Sarcoplasmic reticulum
• 6. Ribosomes
• 7. Glycogen droplets
• 8. Occasional lipid droplets.
Microscopic Structure of a Myofibril
• Myofibrils are fine parallel filaments in sarcoplasm.
• Run through the entire length of the muscle fiber.
• Each myofibril consists of a number of two alternating
bands which are also called the sections, segments or
disks. These bands are formed by muscle proteins.
• The two bands are:
1. Light band or ‘I’ band (isotropic to polarized light)
2. Dark band or ‘A’ band (Anisotropic to polarized light)
Microscopic Structure of a Myofibril Cont...
• ‘I’ band is divided by ‘Z’ line or ‘Z’ disk
• The ‘Z’ line is formed by a protein disk, which does
not permit the passage of light.
• The portion of myofibril between two ‘Z’ lines is
called sarcomere.
• Sarcomere is structural and functional unit of a
skeletal muscle. It is also called the basic contractile
unit of the muscle.
• Sarcomere consists of many threadlike structures
called myofilaments.
• Myofilaments are of two types:
• 1. Actin filaments
• 2. Myosin filaments.
Myocyte Sarcomere
Muscle Fiber
Troponin
• Troponin is formed by three subunits:
• 1. Troponin I, which is attached to F-actin
• 2. Troponin T, which is attached to tropomyosin
• 3. Troponin C, which is attached to calcium ions.
Troponin
• Troponin complex. This is a system of three
regulatory proteins integral to muscle
contraction in skeletal and cardiac muscles
(smooth muscle uses a different system).
• Think of troponins as the "gatekeepers." They
sit on the actin filaments of muscle fibers and
prevent contraction until the right signal—
calcium—arrives.
Troponin
• The Three Types of Troponin
• Each type is named after its specific function within the muscle fiber.
• 1. Troponin C (TnC)
• The "C" stands for Calcium-binding.
• Role: When a muscle gets the signal to move, calcium ions are released.
TnC binds to these ions, causing the entire troponin complex to change
shape.
• Effect: This shape shift moves the "blocker" (tropomyosin) out of the way
so the muscle can contract.
• Note: This form is largely identical in both heart and skeletal muscles.
• 2. Troponin I (TnI)
• The "I" stands for Inhibitory.
• Role: In a relaxed muscle, TnI binds to actin to physically block the "bridge"
that allows muscles to contract.
• Clinical Importance: The cardiac version of this protein (cTnI) is unique to
the heart. If it’s found in your blood, it’s a major red flag that heart muscle
cells have been damaged (like during a heart attack).
Troponin
• 3. Troponin T (TnT)
• The "T" stands for Tropomyosin-binding.
• Role: It acts as the anchor, hooking the entire
troponin complex to tropomyosin (the long protein
strand that wraps around the muscle fiber).
• Clinical Importance: Like TnI, there is a specific
cardiac version (cTnT) used to diagnose cardiac
distress.
• In a healthy body, troponins stay inside the muscle
cells. However, when heart muscle is damaged, the
cells rupture and spill these proteins into the
bloodstream.
Medical importance
Marker Specificity Use Case
The "Gold Standard" for detecting
Cardiac Troponin I (cTnI) High
heart attacks.
Used to monitor heart damage and
Cardiac Troponin T (cTnT) High
risk levels.
Rarely tested, as it doesn't provide
Skeletal Troponin Low
specific diagnostic info for the heart.
Comparison: Why they fail
What happens to Status of the
Condition Primary Driver
the "Gate"? Muscle
Controlled Tropomyosin moves
Normal Fluid movement
Calcium/ATP on command
Chemical/Ionic Tropomyosin
Fatigue Weakness/Failure
buildup struggles to move
Tropomyosin is
Permanent
Rigor Mortis Zero ATP moved, but Myosin
stiffness
can't let go
III. NERVOUS TISSUE
Functions:
i) Conducts impulses to and from body organs
via neurons.
ii) Coordinates with endocrine system
The 3 Elements of Nervous Tissue
1- Brain
2- Spinal cord
3- Nerves and supporting nervous tissues.
Neuron
Neuroglia