capsule - a structure enclosing an organ, usually composed of dense connective tissue.
cortex - the outer portion of an organ, distinguished from its inner, medullary portion.
hilus or hilum - a depression or pit at that part of an organ where the vessels and nerves enter.
lumen - the cavity or channel within a tube or hollow organ. (Abluminal=on the side away from the lumen; as "the basal lamina is on the abluminal side of the endothelium". adluminal- toward the lumen; as "the microvilli are on the adluminal side of the gut absorptive epithelium.")
medulla - the inner portion of an organ, usually in the center.
mucosa - a mucous membrane, comprised of several layers (an epithelium, lamina propria, and often a muscularis mucosae).
parenchyma - the essential elements of an organ; a general term used to designate the functional elements of an organ as distinguished from its framework, or stroma.
stroma - the supporting tissue or scaffolding of an organ, as distinguished from its functional element, or parenchyma.
septum, pl. septa -the dividing wall or partition usually between lobes of an organ.
serosa - a serous membrane, comprised of a mesothelium and underlying connective tissue, lining the serous cavities of the body.
trabecula, pl. trabeculae - a supporting or anchoring strand of connective tissue, usually extending from a capsule into the substance of the enclosed organ.
Although it is no longer true that the study of Latin, and to a lesser extent Greek, is prerequisite for the study of medicine, the composition of today's medical vocabulary makes it evident why study of these languages was once considered necessary. No less than 75% of the vocabulary of anatomy is derived from Greek and Latin words. Thus, some familiarity with these two languages will simplify the task of learning a basic vocabulary and of comprehending new words as they are encountered.
Many of the terms that we use as part of the regular vocabulary retain the original Latin words like "tunica" (=a covering or coat), "vas" (=a vessel), and "stratum" (=a layer) and they are not defined here. This Appendix is prepared principally to explain the meaning of the most commonly encountered Latin and Greek combining forms of words that have undergone some change in the transfer to English.
Many histological terms are composed of a combination of two or more word elements with an '"o" or "i" usually inserted between the two roots to facilitate pronunciation. Thus the word "osteocyte" is derived from the nouns "oste-" (bone) and "-cyte" (cell). By knowing the meanings of the roots used in the prefix, root and suffix of the terms you encounter, you can understand and remember many of the words you will learn as part of your medical career.
Prefixes (pre=in front of, before, + fix=to fasten) Many compound terms consist of a root word preceded by a prefix, commonly a preposition, adverb, or adjective.
auto- (=self) autosome, autocrine
bi- (=two, twice) binucleate, binocular
circum- (=around) circumferential lamellae, circumvallate
con- (=with, together) concentric, condensing
demi- (=half) demilune
dis- (=apart, away from) discontinuous
ect- (=outside) ectoderm, ectopic
end- (=inside) endocardium, endoderm
epi- (=upon, after) epiphysis, epimysium
erythr- (=red) erythrocyte, erythropoiesis
eu- (=good, normal) euchromatin, eukaryote
exo- (=outside) exocrine, exocytosis
extra- (=outside of, beyond) extrapulmonary, extracellular
heter- (=other) heterochromatin, heterolysosome
hyper- (=above, beyond, extreme) hypertrophy, hyperplasia
hypo- (=under, below) hypodermis, hypothalamus
inter- (=among, between) interlobar, intercalated
intra- (=inside, within) intralobular, intracellular
juxta- (=near to) juxtaglomerular cell
leuko- (=white) leukocyte
macro- (=long, large) macrophage, macroscopic
mega- (=great, large) megakaryocyte
mes- (=middle) mesenchyme, mesangial
meta- (=after, beyond) metaphysis, metarteriole
micro- (=small) microscope, microtubule
mono- (=only, sole) monocyte, mononuclear
multi- (=many, much) multivesicular, multinucleate
neo- (=new, young) neocortex, neonatal
neutro- (=neither) neutrophil
non- (=not) nonkeratinized, nonciliated
para- (=beside, beyond) paracrine, paracortex
peri- (=around) perikaryon, periosteum
poly- (=much, many) polyploid, polyribosomes
post- (=after, behind in time or place) postsynaptic, postmitotic
pre- (=before in time or place) precapillary, preadipocyte
pseudo- (=false) pseudostratified
pro- (=before in time or place) proerythrocyte, procollagen
stereo- (=solid, having three dimensions) stereocilia
sub- (=under, below) subcutaneous, submucosa
supra- (=above, beyond) suprarenal, supravital
syn-, sym- (=with, together) syncytium, symphysis
trans- (=through, across, beyond) transendothelial, transcytosis
adip- (=fat) adipocyte
bronchi- (=windpipe) bronchiole
cardi- (=heart) myocardium
chondr- (=cartilage) chondrocyte
cyt- (=cell) cytoplasm
dendr- (=tree) dendrite, dendritic cell
derm- (=skin) epidermis
desm- (=band, ligament) desmosome
fibr- (=fiber) fibroblast
fili- (=thread) filiform
gastr- (=stomach) gastrointestinal
hem-, hemat- (=blood) hemoglobin
hepat- (=liver) hepatocyte
kary- (=nut, nucleus) megakaryocyte, perikaryon
kerat-(=horn) keratinocyte
lact- (=milk) lactiferous duct
lip- (=fat) lipofuscin
lys- (=loose, dissolve) lysosome
my- (=muscle) myofibril
nephr- (=kidney) nephron
neur-(=nerve) neurofilament
nucle- (=kernal) nucleoplasm
odont- (=tooth) odontoblast
ost(e)- (=bone) osteocyte
ov-, oo- (=egg) oviduct, oocyte
pod- (=foot) podocyte
sarco- (=flesh) sarcoplasm
theca- (=case, box) theca folliculi
-clast (=break) osteoclast
-crine (=separate off) endocrine, merocrine
-cyte (=cell) osteocyte, monocyte
-elle, -cle, -ole, -ule (=a diminutive) lobule, spicule, canaliculus, caveolae, corpuscle
-form (=shape) filiform, fusiform
-oid (=form) sinusoid, nucleoid
-phage, phago- (=eat) macrophage, phagocyte
-phil, -philia (=like, have affinity for) acidophilic, hydrophilic
-phobe, -phobic (=fear, dread) chromophobe, hydrophobic
-some (=body) lysosome, chromosome
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