CONNECTIVE TISSUE TYPES:
LOOSE AND DENSE
Types of Connective Tissue
Loose Connective Tissue
 Consists of a number of cell types embedded
in a matrix
 A large amount of ground substance in which
fibers are arranged in a loose irregular
manner.
 Found in all parts of the body
 Responsible for binding various structures
together
o Muscle fibers to muscle fibers
o Skin to underlying tissues.
o Various membranes and mesenteries
Mesentery – Loose
areolar CT
Mesenteries in the
small intestine of cat.
 Comprises all the main components of CT
proper.
 With no predominant cell
 Fibroblasts and macrophages - most
numerous cells, but all the other types of
ctcells are also present
 With moderate amount of collagen, elastic,
and reticular fibers
 Has a delicate consistency
 It is flexible,
 Well vascularized
 Not very resistant to stress.
 Fills spaces between groups of muscle cells
 Supports epithelial tissue
 Forms a layer that sheathes the lymphatic
and blood vessels
Found in:
 Papillary layer of the dermis
 Hypodermis
 Serosal linings of peritoneal and pleural
cavities, and in glands
 Mucous membranes (wet membranes that line
the hollow organs) supporting the epithelial
cells.
Papillary layer of the dermis – loose CT
Dense Connective Tissue
 Adapted to offer resistance and protection
 Fewer cells and a clear predominance of
collagen fibers
 Dense CT is less flexible
 Far more resistant to stress than is loose CT.
Dense irregular CT
 When the collagen fibers are arranged in
bundles without a definite orientation.
 Collagen fibers form a 3-dimensional network
 Provide resistance to stress from all
directions.
 Dermis.
Reticular dermis: Dense irreg. CT
Dense regular CT
 The collagen
bundles are arranged
according to a definite
pattern
 Aligned with the
linear orientation of
fibroblasts in response
to prolonged stresses
exerted in the same
direction;
 Offer great resistance to traction forces.
o Tendons (attach muscle to bone)
o Most ligaments (attach bone to bone)
o Aponeuroses (sheet like tendons
that attach muscle to muscle or
muscle to bone.
Tendons – Dense regular CT
 Elongated cylindrical structures attach
striated muscle to bone
 Rich in collagen fibers
 White and inextensible
 Have parallel, closely packed bundles of
collagen separated by a small quantity of
intercellular ground substance.
 Fibrocytes contain elongated nuclei parallel
to the fibers and sparse cytoplasmic folds
that envelop portions of the collagen
bundles.
Asignment:
Determine the Connective Tissues types found in
the following structures.
Fats in newborn
Fats in the belly of adults
Tunica intima of large artery
Dermis of the skin
Ear auricle
Wharton’s jelly (umbilicus)
Mesentery
Splenic capsule
Stem cell tissue
Tendons
Glisson’s capsule of the liver
Hypodermis of the skin
Precursor cells in primitive supporting tissue
Ligaments
Muscle fascia