Alveolar gland

Alveolar gland
Section of pancreas of dog. X 250.
Centroacinar cells
Code	TH H2.00.02.0.03028

In contrast to tubular glands, in the second main variety of gland, the secretory portion is enlarged and the lumen variously increased in size. These are termed alveolar glands^[1] (or saccular glands^[2], or acinar glands^[3], or acinous glands^[4]).

Some sources draw a clear distinction between acinar and alveolar glands, based upon the shape of the lumen.^[5]

A further complication in the case of the alveolar glands may occur in the form of still smaller saccular diverticuli growing out from the main sacculi. These are termed alveoli.

The term "tubulo-alveolar" (or "tubulo-acinar", or "compound tubulo-acinar", or "compound tubulo-alveolar"^[6]) is used to describe glands that start out as branched tubular, and branch further to terminate in alveoli. This type of gland is found in the salivary glands^[7], esophagus^[8], and mammary glands.

The term "racemose gland"^[9] is used to describe a "compound alveolar gland" or "compound acinar gland".^[10]

Additional images

• 

  Alveoli of lacrimal gland.

• 

  Human submaxillary gland. At the right is a group of mucous alveoli, at the left a group of serous alveoli.

• 

  Section of portion of mamma.

References

1. ^ Alveolar+gland at eMedicine Dictionary
2. ^ Saccular+gland at eMedicine Dictionary
3. ^ acinar
4. ^ Acinous+gland at eMedicine Dictionary
5. ^ Blue Histology - Epithelia and Glands
6. ^ Histology at KUMC glands-glands17
7. ^ Histology at KUMC glands-glands14 "Compound Tubulo- Alveolar"
8. ^ MedEd at Loyola histo/practical/epithelium/hp1-28.html
9. ^ Racemose+gland at eMedicine Dictionary
10. ^ SIU SOM Histology GI

This anatomy article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Glands Anatomy stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую She Will Have Her Way (song) Daud Bolad Look at other dictionaries: alveolar gland — acinous g …   Medical dictionary gland — An organized aggregation of cells functioning as a secretory or excretory organ. SYN: glandula (1) [TA]. [L. glans, acorn] accessory g. a small mass of glandular structure, detached from but lying near another and larger g., to which it is… …   Medical dictionary Gland — A gland is an organ in an animal s body that synthesizes a substance for release such as hormones or breast milk, often into the bloodstream (endocrine gland) or into cavities inside the body or its outer surface (exocrine gland). Types Glands… …   Wikipedia Meibomian gland — Front of left eye with eyelids separated to show medial canthus and openings of tarsal (meibomian) glands. Latin glandulae tarsales Gray s …   Wikipedia Mammary gland — in a human female Cross section of the breast of a human female …   Wikipedia Mammary gland development — is characterized by the unique process by which the epithelium invades the stroma. The development of the mammary gland occurs mainly after birth. During puberty, tubule formation is coupled with branching morphogenesis which establishes the… …   Wikipedia Bulbourethral gland — Male Anatomy The deeper branches of the internal pudendal artery …   Wikipedia mammary gland — Milk producing gland of female mammals. An adapted sweat gland, it is made up of milk producing alveolar cells, surrounded by contractile myoepithelial cells, together with considerable numbers of fat cells. Milk production is hormonally… …   Dictionary of molecular biology preen gland — a large compound alveolar structure on the back of birds, above the base of the tail, which secretes an oily waterproof material that the bird applies to its feathers and skin by preening. Called also uropygial g …   Medical dictionary sebaceous gland —    Oil secreting glands, mostly clustered around hair follicles. The oil, sebum, is released into the oil glands from the disintegrated cytoplasm of shedding holocrine cells that line the alveolar surfaces. The nature of the secretion is often a… …   Herbal-medical glossary 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”