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their cells and on the number of cell layers present. By combining the shape names — squamous (fl at cells), cuboidal, and
columnar — with the term simple if there is a single layer of cells or the term stratifi ed if there is more than one layer of cells,
almost all of the epithelial tissues can be described and named. The photomicrographs on this page and the facing page
represent the simple (single cell layer) epithelial tissues.
Epithelial tissues are surface tissues that consist of numerous cells, with
each cell forming membrane to membrane contact with its neighbors. As a
general rule, descriptions of epithelial tissues are based on the shape of
Epithelial Tissue
Simple squamous epithelium, mesothelium
Surface view of mesentery, 400x
Simple squamous epithelium, mesothelium
Section of mesentery, 400x
Simple squamous epithelium, endothelium
Section of capillary, 630x
Simple cuboidal epithelium
Urinary tubes in kidney - transverse section, 630x (left); longitudinal section, 400x (right)
1 Nucleus
2 Cytoplasm
3 Cell membrane
4 Capillary lumen
5 Glandular lumen
6 Connective tissue
7 Mucous in goblet cell
8 Microvilli
9 Basement membrane
10 Blood vessel with red blood cells
11 Cilia
12 Basal cell
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