What term completes the statement: 'All skeletal ____________ contains chondrocytes in lacunae and extracellular matrix'?

What term completes the statement: 'All skeletal ____________ contains chondrocytes in lacunae and extracellular matrix'?

• A. Cartilage
• B. Bone
• C. Tissue
• D. Connective tissue

Answer: (A)

Chondrocytes in lacunae within a flexible extracellular matrix define cartilage, a key skeletal tissue. In cartilage, the cells live in tiny spaces called lacunae embedded in an ECM rich in proteoglycans and type II collagen, produced by chondroblasts. This tissue is generally avascular, relying on diffusion for nutrients, which helps explain its characteristics and its role in forming joints, the nose, tracheal rings, and other skeletal structures. Bone, for contrast, has osteocytes in lacunae within a mineralized matrix, not chondrocytes, and broad terms like tissue or connective tissue cover many cell types beyond cartilage. So the term that fits the statement is cartilage.

Chondrocytes in lacunae within a flexible extracellular matrix define cartilage, a key skeletal tissue. In cartilage, the cells live in tiny spaces called lacunae embedded in an ECM rich in proteoglycans and type II collagen, produced by chondroblasts. This tissue is generally avascular, relying on diffusion for nutrients, which helps explain its characteristics and its role in forming joints, the nose, tracheal rings, and other skeletal structures. Bone, for contrast, has osteocytes in lacunae within a mineralized matrix, not chondrocytes, and broad terms like tissue or connective tissue cover many cell types beyond cartilage. So the term that fits the statement is cartilage.