The trachea, colloquially called the windpipe, is a cartilaginous tube that connects

the pharynx and larynx to the lungs, allowing the passage of air, and so is present in almost all airbreathing animals with lungs. Only in the lungfish, where the lung is connected to the pharynx and
the larynx, is it absent.[citation needed] The trachea extends from the larynx and branches into the
two primary bronchi. At the top of the trachea the cricoid cartilage attaches it to the larynx. This is the
only complete ring, the others being incomplete rings of reinforcing cartilage. The trachealis
muscle joins the ends of the rings and these are joined vertically by bands of fibrousconnective
tissue the annular ligaments of trachea. The epiglottis closes the opening to the larynx during
swallowing.
The trachea develops in the second month of development. It is lined with an epithelium that
has goblet cells which produce protective mucins. An inflammatory condition, also involving the
larynx and bronchi, called croup can result in a barking cough. Atracheotomy is often performed for
ventilation in surgical operations where needed. Intubation is also carried out for the same reason by
the inserting of a tube into the trachea. From 2008, operations have transplanted a windpipe grown
by stem cells, and synthetic windpipes; their success is however doubtful.[1]