Thyroid gland. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a fracture through the thyroid gland revealing several follicles (purple and blue). Betw

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Thyroid gland. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a fracture through the thyroid gland revealing several follicles (purple and blue). Between the follicles is connective tissue (brown). A follicle consists of a layer of epithelial cells (blue) around a central storage chamber. The cells produce the thyroid hormones tri-iodothyronin (T3) and thyroxine (T4) and secrete them into the central chamber where they are stored as the glycoprotein thyroid colloid (purple). Thyroid hormones regulate the body's metabolism.

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Size: 3500px × 2894px
Photo credit: © STEVE GSCHMEISSNER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: anatomical, anatomy, biological, biology, body, chamber, chambers, colloid, coloured, connective, endocrine, endocrinology, epithelial, epithelium, false-coloured, follicle, follicles, fracture, fractured, gland, glycoprotein, hormone, hormones, human, metabolic, metabolism, secretory, section, sem, storage, thyroid, thyroxine, tissue, tri-iodothyronine