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Epithelium
Epithelium: the tissue coating all the internal and external surfaces of the body. It is composed of cells called epithelial cells of variable shape and arrangement.
The epithelium is a tissue that covers all the surfaces of our organism, on both the outside (skin, mucous membranes, natural orifices) and the inside (thoracic cavity, digestive tract, etc.). It can also constitute glands.
An epithelium is composed of cells called epithelial cells that are arranged closely together.
The number of cells, shape and arrangement depend on the type of epithelium.
The function of the epithelial cells differs according to the organ they cover: protection against the external environment (e.g. skin), sensorial reception (e.g. skin), mechanical protection (e.g. esophageal epithelium), secretory epithelia for chemical protection (e.g. gastric epithelium), absorption (e.g. intestinal epithelium), movement (e.g. respiratory epithelium and the epithelium of the Fallopian tubes), substance exchange (e.g. capillary epithelium*)…
(*small blood vessels)