The human body is made up of millions of cells of various shapes, types and sizes. They are so small that they can only be viewed and studied under a microscope. In fact, cells are microscopic building blocks from which tissues, organ systems and the entire body are built. Despite the difference in shape, all cells are characterized by a common structural scheme. They consist of an outer membrane, a central nucleus, and a semi-liquid cytoplasm. You can talk about different types of cells for a long time, but in this article only one type, called goblet cells, will be considered. Let's try to understand what they are, where they are located and how they function.
Variant names
Such cells are known by several names. The phrase "goblet enterocyte", "goblet exocrinocide" and "goblet granulocyte" is often used. In Latin, the goblet cell is called enterocytus caliciformis. The term "goblet cell" is sometimes used, which also refers to a goblet cell. All these terms are equivalent to each other and are used as synonyms.
The name reflects the unusual shape of the cells. They look like a tall narrow glass, slightly expanding at the top.
Cells of thisspecies belong to the epithelium of the mucous membranes and are engaged in the production of mucus. They are present in the body of both humans and animals.
Localization. Intestine
The goblet cell is part of the epithelium of several human organs. One of the places of localization is the intestines. The intestinal epithelium has a rather complex structure. It combines several types of enterocytes, including bordered, goblet, acidophilic, borderless, endocrine, undifferentiated and others. All of them are unicellular glands with different functions. So, for example, the border cells of the epithelium are engaged in parietal digestion and absorption. Goblet cells are responsible for the production of mucus (we will talk about this in more detail below). Endocrine cells produce hormones in the intestinal tract, and Pannet's acidophilic cells produce several digestive enzymes. The function of poorly differentiated cells is the regeneration of the epithelium.
Intestinal goblet cells are located on the intestinal villi. They are embedded one at a time between the border cells. On the apical parts of the villi and in the tubular depressions of the mucous membrane, called Lieberkühn's glands or intestinal crypts, goblet cells are not found. Although there are rare exceptions.
There are more cells of this type in the small intestine. 9.5% of enterocytes are goblet cells of the epithelium. Moreover, their number increases in the distal direction of the intestine. They are evenly distributed over the upper part of the crypts and the base of the villi, on the villi themselves they are significantlyless.
Airways
Another place of localization of goblet exocrinocytes is the respiratory tract. Here, almost 30% of the epithelium consists of these cells. Cells are also arranged singly. They contain vacuoles filled with mucous secretion. Vacuoles occupy an expanded apical part. The narrowed part of the cell contains the Golgi complex and many mitochondria. The goblet cell of the respiratory tract is equipped with microvilli, which become more visible after the release of mucus.
The secretion of mucus is cyclical, which depends on external factors, i.e. temperature and humidity.
Goblet cells of the conjunctiva
The next location of goblet cells is the conjunctiva of the eye. There are quite a lot of them in the conjunctival mucosa. The secret secreted by these cells differs from the mucus secreted by the epithelium in other organs. Goblet cells of the conjunctiva are located on the basal layer and have an oval and round shape. The mucus that they synthesize and secrete binds into a kind of network that captures and fixes foreign bodies and bacteria. During blinking, the net breaks and shifts to the medial edge, removing debris and bacteria from the eye.
Pancreas goblet cells
Goblet cells are present in the excretory ducts of the pancreas. They are located not along the entire length of the ducts, but in their wide part. Here, the exocrine glands form a mucosal lining.
Parotid salivary gland
Salivary glandalso rich in goblet cells. They are located near the mouth and secrete mucus that can put up a chemical barrier to microbes. With age, the number of goblet cells in the parotid salivary glands decreases. The antimicrobial barrier weakens.
Function details
Goblet cells produce an insoluble mucus called mucin. Mucin lines the mucous membrane, sometimes accumulating to a thickness of 1.5 mm. To form it, the mucitogenic granules absorb water and swell. Goblet cell mucus has several functions. In the stomach, pancreas and intestines, it moisturizes the mucous membranes of organs, promotes the contents of the stomach and intestines, and is part of the process of parietal digestion. In the conjunctiva, in addition to moisturizing, it has a protective function, in the salivary glands it has a barrier function.
Goblet cell antibodies
In the normal state, there are no antibodies to goblet cells in the blood. If these antibodies are detected during a blood test from a vein, then the patient has ulcerative colitis. Therefore, goblet cell antibody testing is indicated for the differential diagnosis of chronic inflammatory bowel disease.
