BODY TISSUES

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Tissues are groups of cells, similar in structure and function. Tissues are organized in organs
such as the heart/ kidneys/ lungs. There are 4 main tissue types:
- epithelium tissue/epithelium which is covering tissue
- connective tissue which is a supporting tissue
- muscular tissue which is a movable tissue
- nervous tissue which is a control tissue

EPITHELIAL TISSUE / EPITHELIUM

- is the lining, covering and glandular tissue of the body
- functions: protection
absorbtion
secretion
- they are avascular (they dont have blood supply of their own)

Classification of the epithelium according to cell arangement/layers:

- simple epithelium
- stratified epithelium

CONNECTIVE tissue
- connects the body parts
- its found everywhere in the body
- its the most abundant and widely distributed
- functions: protect, support and bind together other body tissues.
- most of them are vascularised. Exceptions: tendons & ligaments (poor vascularisation)
cartilages are AVASCULAR

MUSCLE tissue
- function: to contract/shorten to produce movement
Types of MUSCULAR tissues (3):
- the skeletal muscle (They can be controlled voluntary. They form the flesh of the body.
They have obvious striations = stripes)
- the cardiac muscle (found in the heart. Is under involuntary control)
- the smooth muscle (So called because they dont have visible striations. It is found in the
walls of hollow=empty organs such as: stomach, uterus, bladder and blood vessels.
- peristaltis = a wavelike motion keeps food moving through the small intestine