U1 FCFC

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  • Q: What is histology?

  • A: Histology is the study of the microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues of humans, animals, and plants, and how these tissues are arranged to constitute organs.

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  • Q: What is histopathology?

  • A: Histopathology is the microscopic study of diseased tissue.

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  • Q: What are tissues?

  • A: Tissues are assemblages of similarly specialized cells united in performing a specific function.

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  • Q: What are the two interacting components of tissues?

  • A: The two interacting components of tissues are cells and extracellular matrix (ECM).

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  • Q: What is the role of the extracellular matrix (ECM)?

  • A: The ECM supports cells, contains fluid transporting nutrients to cells, carries away wastes and secretory products, and is produced locally by cells.

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  • Q: What is a cell?

  • A: A cell is the anatomical, functional, and genetic unit of living beings.

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  • Q: What are some key characteristics of cells?

  • A: Key characteristics of cells include self-replication, synthesis of macromolecules, interaction with the environment, energy production, digestion, catabolic processes, aerobic and anaerobic respiration, and movement.

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  • Q: What are the different shapes of cells?

  • A: Cells can be flat, cuboidal, cylindrical, polyhedral, biconcave or oval, stellate, elongated or fusiform, filiform, or spherical.

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  • Q: What is the size range of human cells?

  • A: Human cells range from as small as lymphocytes (4 µm) to as large as certain neurons (over 1 meter).

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  • Q: What are the four basic types of tissues?

  • A: The four basic types of tissues are epithelial, connective, muscle, and nervous tissue.

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  • Q: What is the function of epithelial tissue?

  • A: Epithelial tissue functions in lining surfaces or body cavities and glandular secretion.

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  • Q: What is the function of connective tissue?

  • A: Connective tissue functions in support and protection of tissues and organs.

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  • Q: What is the function of muscle tissue?

  • A: Muscle tissue functions in strong contraction and body movements.

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  • Q: What is the function of nervous tissue?

  • A: Nervous tissue functions in the transmission of nerve impulses.

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  • Q: What is the difference between parenchyma and stroma?

  • A: Parenchyma refers to cells responsible for the organ’s functions, while stroma refers to cells with a supporting role.

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  • Q: Why are tissues sectioned for microscopic examination?

  • A: Tissues are sectioned because most tissues and organs are too thick for light to pass through.

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  • Q: What are the steps in preparing tissue sections?

  • A: The steps include sampling, cutting into smaller pieces, preparation, cutting with a microtome, assembling, staining, drying, transliteration, and extension.

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  • Q: What is fixation in histology?

  • A: Fixation preserves tissue structure using chemicals like formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde.

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  • Q: What are the steps in tissue embedding?

  • A: The steps include dehydration, clearing, infiltration, and embedding.

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  • Q: What is the thickness of sections for light microscopy?

  • A: Sections for light microscopy are typically 3-10 µm thick.

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  • Q: What is the thickness of sections for electron microscopy?

  • A: Sections for electron microscopy are less than 1 µm thick.

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  • Q: What are frozen sections?

  • A: Frozen sections involve rapidly freezing tissue, fixing it, and cutting slices using a cryostat.

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  • Q: Why is staining necessary in histology?

  • A: Staining is necessary because most cells and extracellular material are colorless.

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  • Q: What is the most common stain used in histology?

  • A: The most common stain is Hematoxylin & Eosin (H&E).

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  • Q: What does Hematoxylin stain in cells?

  • A: Hematoxylin stains nuclei purple and RNA-rich cytoplasm dark blue-purple.

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  • Q: What does Eosin stain in cells?

  • A: Eosin stains other cytoplasmic structures and collagen pink.

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  • Q: What is the resolving power of a light microscope?

  • A: The resolving power of a light microscope is approximately 0.2 µm.

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  • Q: What is the difference between TEM and SEM?

  • A: TEM produces 2D images by passing electrons through tissue, while SEM produces 3D images by scanning electrons across the specimen surface.

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  • Q: What is enzyme histochemistry?

  • A: Enzyme histochemistry localizes cellular structures using specific enzymatic activity present in those structures.

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  • Q: What are some examples of enzymes studied in enzyme histochemistry?

  • A: Examples include phosphatases, dehydrogenases, and peroxidase.

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  • Q: What is immunohistochemistry?

  • A: Immunohistochemistry is a technique that uses antibodies to detect specific antigens in tissue sections.

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  • Q: What is the indirect method in immunohistochemistry?

  • A: The indirect method uses an unlabeled primary antibody and a labeled secondary antibody to amplify the signal.

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  • Q: What is in situ hybridization (ISH)?

  • A: ISH identifies specific sequences in genes or RNA by binding complementary strands of nucleic acid.

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  • Q: What is fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH)?

  • A: FISH uses fluorescent probes to detect and localize specific DNA sequences on chromosomes.

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  • Q: What are artifacts in histology?

  • A: Artifacts are structural abnormalities not present in living tissue, often caused by shrinkage during tissue preparation.

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  • Q: Why is it important to consider 3D structures when interpreting 2D sections?

  • A: It is important because components in front of and behind the section are missing, so the full 3D structure must be considered.