FUNCTIONS OF THE CONNECTIVE TISSUE
The connective tissue performs a series of very important functions in the body, which include:
– Support for other tissues and organs and for the body as a whole.
– Filling spaces between other tissues and structures.
– Promote adhesion between tissues or between body structures and between organs.
– The connective tissue is the passageway for blood vessels, lymphatic vessels and nerves. Therefore, it plays an important role in the nutrition and functional control of its own cells and, importantly, of cells of other tissues and organs, and of the body as a whole. Its extracellular matrix plays an important role in the diffusion of oxygen, CO2 and other gases, nutrients and metabolites, hormones, and many other molecules, providing the communication between cells and blood vessels.
– Structural support for other tissues and organs and for the body as a whole (cartilage and bones).
– Reserve of energy in the adipose cells of the body fat deposits.
– Defense of the body by the participation of its cells in the immune response and inflammatory processes.
– Defense of the body by lymphoid organs, lymphocytes cells and cells of the mononuclear phagocytic system, all of which are connective tissue derived cells.
– Production of blood cells by the hematopoietic marrow.