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The tunica intima (Neo-Latin "inner coat"), or intima for short, is the innermost tunica (layer) of an artery or vein. It is made up of one layer of endothelial cells (and macrophages in areas of disturbed blood flow), [1] [2] and is supported by an internal elastic lamina. The endothelial cells are in direct contact with the blood flow.
The tunica intima of muscular arteries features a thin subendothelial layer and a prominent internal elastic lamina, while the media may contain up to 40 layers of large smooth muscle cells interspersed with a variable number of elastic lamellae, depending on the vessel size. Only the larger muscular arteries possess an external elastic lamina.
The muscle fiber cells are arranged in 5 to 7 layers of circular and longitudinal smooth muscle with about 50μ in length and contain well-marked, rod-shaped nuclei, which are often slightly curved. Separating the tunica media from the outer tunica externa in larger arteries is the external elastic membrane (also called the external elastic ...
Micrograph showing the internal elastic lamina (thin pink wavy line - image edge mid-left to image edge bottom-centre-left). H&E stain.. The internal elastic lamina or internal elastic lamella is a layer of elastic tissue that forms the outermost part of the tunica intima of blood vessels.
Tunica albuginea is a general term for a tunic of whitish connective tissue. In human anatomy, it generally is applied in three contexts: the fibrous sheath of the corpora cavernosa penis, the fibrous tunic of the testis, and the connective tissue tunic around the ovaries. [6] Tunica dartos is a muscular tunic beneath the skin of the scrotum ...
The tunica media may (especially in arteries) be rich in vascular smooth muscle, which controls the caliber of the vessel. Veins do not have the external elastic lamina, but only an internal one. The tunica media is thicker in the arteries rather than the veins. The outer layer is the tunica adventitia and the thickest layer in veins. It is ...
The walls of coronary arteries consist of three layers: the tunica intima or inner layer (possible site of lipid deposits and fibrosis, during life), the tunica media (a smooth muscle layer whose tone is modulated by the nervous system, influencing vessel diameter and resistance) and adventitia (where nervous endings are located). Normally, the ...
Intima–media thickness (IMT), also called intimal medial thickness, is a measurement of the thickness of tunica intima and tunica media, the innermost two layers of the wall of an artery. The measurement is usually made by external ultrasound and occasionally by internal, invasive ultrasound catheters .