Which statement is true about hyaline cartilage?

Which statement is true about hyaline cartilage?

• A. It has its own blood supply
• B. It is the most abundant type of cartilage
• C. It is mainly composed of elastic fibers
• D. It forms the external ear

Answer: (B)

Hyaline cartilage is the most common type of cartilage in the body, which is why that statement is true. It forms the smooth surfaces of joints (articular cartilage) and appears in the nose, trachea, bronchi, and the costal cartilages of the ribs, as well as in the fetal skeleton. It doesn’t have its own blood supply; it’s avascular and gets nutrients by diffusion from surrounding tissues, which helps explain why injuries to it heal slowly. Its matrix is rich in type II collagen, not elastic fibers—that distinction marks it from elastic cartilage, which contains many elastic fibers and supports structures requiring more elasticity, like the external ear and epiglottis. So the external ear is not made of hyaline cartilage, and the other statements don’t fit hyaline cartilage’s characteristics.

Hyaline cartilage is the most common type of cartilage in the body, which is why that statement is true. It forms the smooth surfaces of joints (articular cartilage) and appears in the nose, trachea, bronchi, and the costal cartilages of the ribs, as well as in the fetal skeleton. It doesn’t have its own blood supply; it’s avascular and gets nutrients by diffusion from surrounding tissues, which helps explain why injuries to it heal slowly. Its matrix is rich in type II collagen, not elastic fibers—that distinction marks it from elastic cartilage, which contains many elastic fibers and supports structures requiring more elasticity, like the external ear and epiglottis. So the external ear is not made of hyaline cartilage, and the other statements don’t fit hyaline cartilage’s characteristics.