Related topics: cells · cancer cells · protein

Artificial mucus identifies link to tumor formation

During cold and flu season, excess mucus is a common, unpleasant symptom of illness, but the slippery substance is essential to human health. To better understand its many roles, researchers synthesized the major component ...

Elucidating the process of bile duct formation in the liver

Bile ducts are pathways that carry hepatocyte-produced bile from the liver to the small intestine. In the human fetal liver, bile ducts are formed from bile duct epithelial cells surrounding the portal vein, and hepatocytes ...

Researchers discover key to epithelial cell growth

Australian researchers have discovered a new way that epithelial cells, which form layers in organs like the skin and stomach, attach to one another, and how they perceive growth signals at these attachments, helping them ...

Nanodiamonds can block tumor metastasis in mice, study shows

Nanodiamonds are 2–8 nm carbon nanoparticles, which can be easily functionalized with various chemical groups like carboxylic groups or drugs. Previous research has shown that actively dividing cells are more likely to ...

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Epithelium

In biology and medicine, an epithelium is a tissue composed of cells that line the cavities and surfaces of structures throughout the body. Many glands are also formed from epithelial tissue. It lies on top of connective tissue, and the two layers are separated by a basement membrane.

In humans, epithelium is classified as a primary body tissue, the other ones being connective tissue, muscle tissue and nervous tissue.

Epithelium is often defined by the expression of the adhesion molecule e-cadherin (as opposed to n-cadherin, which is used by cells of the connective tissue).

Functions of epithelial cells include secretion, selective absorption, protection, transcellular transport and detection of sensation and they commonly as a result present extensive apical-basolateral polarity (e.g. different membrane proteins expressed) and specialisation.

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