Areolar connective tissue
Areolar connective tissue (or loose connective tissue) is the most widely distributed connective tissue type in vertebrates.
The cells of this type of tissue are generally separated by quite some distance by a gel-like gelatinous substance primarily made up of collagenous and elastic fibers
Areolar connective tissue holds organs in place and attaches epithelial tissue to other underlying tissues. It also serves as a reservoir of water and salts for surrounding tissues. Almost all cells obtain their nutrients from and release their wastes into areolar connective tissue.
Loose connective tissue is named based on the "weave" and type of its constituent fibers. There are three main types:
- Collagenous fibers: collagenous fibers are made of collagen and consist of bundles of fibrils that are coils of collagen molecules.
- Elastic fibers: elastic fibers are made of elastin and are "stretchable."
- Reticular fibers: reticular fibers consist of one or more types of very thin collagen fibers. They join connective tissues to other tissues.
It has lots of spindles that help the bones get bone marrow
- areolar+tissue at eMedicine Dictionary
- t_12/12810198 at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
- Bioweb at UWLAX Zoolab
- Histology at OU 43_07 - "Skin"
Histology: connective tissue
|Classification||proper (loose/areolar, dense, adipose brown and white, reticular) embryonic (mucous, mesenchymal) specialized (cartilage, bone, blood)|
|Extracellular matrix||ground substance (tissue fluid) fibers (collagen, reticular fiber, elastic fibers)|
|Cells||resident (fibroblast, adipocyte, chondroblast, osteoblast), wandering cell|