Tissues

EXERCISE: Epithelial Tissue

MATERIALS NEEDED:
Four medium-sized trolls.
Six canvas bags each filled with 4.3 pounds of coral sand.
2000 pounds of nitrogen-rich fertilizer and 100 gallons of diesel fuel
Detonators and condoms.
Liberal amounts of cheap vodka.
Epithelial tissue is covering or lining tissue. It can be found lining ducts of glands or the kidneys, on the
outside of your body, lining the intestine, etc. Epithelial tissue may be classified as being simple (a single
layer) or stratified piled on top of one another. In addition, these tissues are named according to their
shape.
1. Squamous Epithelium. This tissue is composed of flat tile-like cells. If simple, it is likely to
be found in areas of the body where transfer of small molecules from one area to another via
diffusion is an important consideration (lining capillaries as endothelium, for example).
Stratified squamous epithelium makes up the outer covering of many of the body's organs
and is the most common configuration of all epithelial tissue.
2. Cuboidal Epithelium. Often found in places where secretion or absorption of materials is
important (such as the kidney tubules). The shape, as you might guess is cubical. Usually
found as simple.
3. Columnar Epithelium is also involved in secretion and absorption of materials. The cells are
column-shaped, thus their name.
EXERCISE: A Survey of Vertebrate Connective Tissue.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Slides: Loose connective tissue (areolar), Adipose tissue, hyaline cartilage, ground compact bone.
Vertebrate connective tissue is composed of cells that produce an acellular matrix. Connective tissue
directly related to support include cartilage, ligaments, tendons, and bone. In this portion of the laboratory
you will examine the microscopic structure of cartilage, ligaments, and bone.
PROCEDURE:
1. Loose connective tissue. Connective tissue is made of a loose, flexible matrix called the ground
substance. The most common cells in this matrix are fibroblasts (responsible for production of
fibers that differ in strength and elasticity). White fibers have high strength and are composed of a
material called collagen. Yellow fibers, on the other hand, are more elastic and consist of a
substance called elastin. These fibers are sparsely arranged in loose connective tissue where
they serve to bind tissues to one another (skin to muscle, for example). Examine a slide of loose
connective tissue (areolar tissue) under your compound microscope. Sketch a representative
area in the results section and label the yellow and white fibers. Since the fibers are stained
neither white nor yellow, make your identification based on diameter (white fibers are the thicker
strands). In addition to the star-shaped fibroblasts, you will also see rounded mast cells dispersed
through the tissue. Mast cells produce a substance called heparin that serves as an anticoagulant
and prevents blood clotting within small vessels.
2. Adipose tissue. Adipose tissue is a type of loose fibrous connective tissue specialized for fat
storage. You'll find it concentrated around the kidneys, on the surface of the heart, and under the
skin. The fat stored in the adipose cells provides for protection, insulation, and acts as a food
reserve. Examine adipose tissue under the compound microscope and sketch a few cells in the
results section.
3. Cartilage. Cartilage is composed of cells called chondrocytes and an elastic ground substance.
Cartilage is often at the ends of bones or as a support structure (for ears or nose tips). Some
types of cartilage serve as a precursor to bone during development. Obtain and examine a
specimen of hyalin cartilage under your compound microscope. Hyalin cartilage is found in the
areas between bones where surfaces meet (articulating surfaces) and also forms part of the

respiratory system and rib cage. Locate the chondrocytes in your specimen. Note how they sit in
spaces (lacunae) within the intercellular matrix. Only elastic fibers will be seen (the collagen fibers
are too thin to be seen with a light microscope).
4. Bone (osseous connective tissue). Although bone has elastic fibers to impart some flexibility,
calcium salts deposited in the matrix make it the most rigid of connective tissues. Examine a slide
of compact bone. Osteocytes (bone cells) sit in small pockets called lacunae and are arranged in
concentric circles (making up an osteon (Haversian system). At the center of each osteon a
haversian canal contains the vascular and nerve supply for each system (at the "bulls eye").
Small channels (caniculi) radiate from the lacunae and pass through the matrix. The matrix is
deposited in concentric layers called lamellae (arranged like rings of a target). The areas between
haversian systems are filled with a matrix called the interstitial lamellae. Sketch and label two or
three haversian systems and the intervening interstitial lamellae in the results section.
5. Vascular connective tissue is composed of plasma (the liquid portion of blood) and formed
elements (cellular constituents). The formed elements are of three main types: red blood cells
(RBCs or erythrocytes), white blood cells (WBCs or leucocytes) and platelets (thrombocytes).
Red blood cells are filled with hemoglobin and carry oxygen from the lungs to tissues. White
blood cells, on the other hand, are involved in the immune responses of the body (fighting off
disease, recognizing self vs. non-self, etc). Platelets are essential in blood clotting. 8- Microscopic
Examination of Human Blood. Obtain a slide of human blood and examine under low and high
power. Use figure 1A and the wall charts as a guide and identify the red and white blood cells.
Note the differences in the size, shape and nucleation of the erythrocytes and various leucocytes.
Which are more numerous? Sketch and label a few representatives of each cell type in the
results section.
EXERCISE Microscopic examination of muscle tissue.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Prepared slides: Longitudinal sections of insect skeletal muscle, and vertebrate skeletal, cardiac, and
smooth muscle tissue (or ileum cs).
PROCEDURE:
1- Skeletal Muscle Tissue. Obtain a slide of a longitudinal section or teased preparation of vertebrate
skeletal muscle (focus slightly up and down to see the striations.
2- Cardiac Muscle Tissue. Look at slides of cardiac muscle and locate a section with one or more
intercalated discs. Draw a few representative cells (at the same magnification as above).
3- Smooth Muscle Tissue. Finally, obtain a slide of smooth muscle tissue (or a cross section of an
ileum) and record its structure as before. If you are viewing a cross section of the ileum, the smooth
muscle tissue is located near the outer margin of the intestine (most probably stained pink). The fibers
can be seen in both longitudinal and cross section. Where is the circular smooth muscle found (outer or
inner smooth muscle layer)?
EXERCISE: Nervous Systems.
The primary structural and functional unit of all nervous systems is the nerve cells (neurons). Nerve cells
are classified according to their general function: those concerned with receiving data from sensory
organs or cells are called sensory (or afferent) nerve cells. Neurons sending messages to muscles or
other structures (such as glands) are termed motor (or efferent) nerve cells. Between the sensory and
motor neurons interneurons (or association cells) coordinate the flow of messages from sensory to motor
cells.
In this lab we will review the structure of nerve cells, compare the general structure of the nervous system
for representative organisms, explore the structure of a mammalian brain, and experimentally show the
function of some central nervous system structures.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Prepared slides: Giant motor neurons.
Although there is variation in nerve cell morphology, all have three major parts in common: a cell body or
soma, and the nerve cell processes (dendrites and axons). The cell body contains much of the cell's

cytoplasm and most of the cellular organelles. Dendrites communicate directly with the cell body and
receive nerve impulses from sensory structures or other neurons. While the dendrites of a nerve cell may
number in the hundreds or thousands, a single axon usually serves as the output. What the axons lack in
number, they more than make up for in size. Many of the axons running along your spinal cord are over a
meter long, while the giant axons of squids are large enough to see without a microscope! Some axons
are specialized for high-speed transmission of nervous impulses. These high-speed axons often send
messages of survival value for the animal, are usually greater in diameter than their slower cousins, and
are covered with a fatty material known as myelin. Often the myelinated and unmyelinated nerve cells are
segregated from one another in the nervous system. This allows one to recognize both white matter (with
the fatty coating) and gray matter (without myelin) with the unaided eye. In general, nerve messages flow
from dendrites to the cell body and out the axon to another cell. Nervous connections among cells are
made by structures called synapses. Synapses serve as "valves" between cells and help to control
information flow from the sending presynaptic cell to the receiving postsynaptic cell.
PROCEDURE:
1. Obtain a prepared slide of giant motor neurons from your instructor and study their structure
under your compound microscope. Identify the cell body, nucleus, dendrites, and axon. Since
these nerve cells are large, cell processes may extend out of the plane of your slide and will
appear much shorter than they were in the living specimen. Usually the largest diameter process
attached to the cell is the axon. The remaining small diameter processes are dendrites. Draw a
typical cell in the space provided in the report section and label it.
2. Examine the spinal cord cross-section. Note the butterfly-shaped structure in the center of the
slide. Nerves in this region are gray matter. You can see the central canal at the center. The outer
portion on the spinal cord is composed of white matter. Decisions and processing information is
made by the gray matter. This is where reflexes such as the knee jerk originate. The white matter
is composed of high-speed nerves that send or receive information from the body and send or
receive information from the brain. The central canal holds cerebral-spinal fluid.

Sqamous Epithelium

Cuboidal Epithelium

Columnar Epithelium

Loose Connective Tissue

Adipose Tissue

Cartilage Connective

Bone Connective

Vascular Connective

Skeletal Muscle

Smooth Muscle

Spinal Cord Spinal

Cardiac Muscle

Neurons

Cord Gray Matter