Anatomy Exam Histology of Connective Tissues 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Reticular fibers are composed primarily of which collagen type?
- Type I collagen
- Type II collagen
- Type III collagen (Correct answer)
- Type IV collagen
Correct answer: Type III collagen
Reticular fibers are thin collagen fibers composed of type III collagen, forming supportive networks in lymphoid organs and liver.
Question 2: Which staining technique selectively demonstrates reticular fibers in histological sections?
- Hematoxylin and eosin
- Masson's trichrome
- Silver impregnation (Gomori) (Correct answer)
- Toluidine blue
Correct answer: Silver impregnation (Gomori)
Silver impregnation methods (such as Gomori's reticulin stain) selectively blacken reticular fibers, making them argyrophilic.
Question 3: Plasma cells in connective tissue are terminally differentiated forms of which cell?
- T lymphocytes
- B lymphocytes (Correct answer)
- Natural killer cells
- Monocytes
Correct answer: B lymphocytes
Plasma cells are terminally differentiated B lymphocytes specialized for antibody secretion.
Question 4: The 'clock-face' or 'cartwheel' chromatin pattern is characteristic of which connective tissue cell?
- Fibroblast
- Macrophage
- Mast cell
- Plasma cell (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Plasma cell
Plasma cells display a characteristic clock-face chromatin pattern due to heterochromatin arranged peripherally in the nucleus.
Question 5: Which component of the basement membrane forms a self-assembling polygonal lattice?
- Fibronectin
- Type IV collagen (Correct answer)
- Laminin
- Perlecan
Correct answer: Type IV collagen
Type IV collagen molecules self-assemble into a polygonal lattice network that forms the structural scaffold of all basement membranes.
Question 6: Adipose tissue is classified as a type of connective tissue because:
- Adipocytes are derived from neural crest cells
- It contains cells within an extracellular matrix of mesenchymal origin (Correct answer)
- It is found beneath all epithelia
- Its cells secrete collagen
Correct answer: It contains cells within an extracellular matrix of mesenchymal origin
Adipose tissue is a connective tissue because adipocytes (derived from mesenchymal stem cells) reside in an extracellular matrix.
Question 7: Fibronectin in connective tissue ECM functions primarily to:
- Provide tensile strength
- Mediate cell adhesion to the ECM via integrins (Correct answer)
- Store growth factors
- Resist compressive forces
Correct answer: Mediate cell adhesion to the ECM via integrins
Fibronectin contains RGD sequences that bind integrin receptors on cell surfaces, mediating cell-ECM adhesion and migration.
Anatomy Exam Histology of Connective Tissues 3
Reticular fibers are composed primarily of which collagen type?