Connective Tissue Biology
A basic science examiner asks about the ultrastructure of tendons. When viewing an electron micrograph, a characteristic 67nm banding pattern is visible in the collagen fibrils. The specimen shows tropocollagen molecules arranged in a quarter-stagger array with lysyl oxidase-mediated cross-links. Regarding tendon structure and composition:
Mark each as TRUE or FALSE
The hierarchical structure of tendon is: tropocollagen (300nm) β collagen fibril (20-400nm) β collag...
Type I collagen comprises 95% of total tendon collagen; molecules are arranged in a quarter-stagger ...
Type III collagen is the predominant collagen in mature tendon; the crimp pattern is lost during nor...
The crimp pattern (wavy appearance of collagen fibers) allows initial elastic deformation without fi...
The enthesis is the specialized fibrocartilaginous zone where tendon inserts into bone; it has four ...
Answer the questions to see explanations
Click T (True) or F (False) for each option