Parenchyma

Parenchyma is a term used to describe a bulk of a substance. It is used in different ways in animals and in plants.

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The term is New Latin, from Greek parenkhuma, visceral flesh, from parenkhein, to pour in beside : para-, beside + en-, in + khein, to pour.^[1]

In animals

The parenchyma are the functional parts of an organ in the body.^[2] This is in contrast to the stroma, which refers to the supporting tissue of organs, being exactly, connective tissues.

Examples include:

In plants

Main article: Ground Tissue: Parenchyma

Parenchyma cells are thin-walled cells of the ground tissue that make up the bulk of most nonwoody structures, although sometimes their cell walls can be lignified. Parenchyma cells in between the epidermis and pericycle in a root or shoot constitute the cortex, and are used for storage of food. Parenchyma cells within the center of the root or shoot constitute the pith. Parenchyma cells in the ovary constitutes the nucellus and are brick-like in formation. Parenchyma cells in the leaf constitute the mesophyll; they are responsible for photosynthesis and they allow for the interchange of gases^[3].

References

1. ^ Parenchyma at eMedicine Dictionary
2. ^ http://www.siumed.edu/~dking2/intro/glands.htm#7
3. ^ http://www.botany.uwc.ac.za/sci_ed/grade10/anatomy/leaves.htm