CLASSIFICATION OF EXOCRINE GLANDS – 1
One of the severeal criteria used for classifying exocrine glands refers to the branching of their secretory portion as well of their excretory duct or ducts.
Regarding the branching of the excretory duct:
Small glands may consist of a secretory portion and a single excretory duct. This type is called a simple gland. The gland in the upper left portion of this page is a simple gland.
Regarding the branching of the secretory portion:
Considering a gland with a more complex structure, formed by a duct and more than one secretory unit, the gland is called a branched simple gland – see the example in the upper right portion of the figure.
A gland whose excretory duct is branched is called a compound gland. The two drawings in the lower portion of the figure show this type of gland.
