Cartilage and Bone

Trachea, Monkey


Examine a cartilage plate in the wall of the trachea. Note first that the cartilage is entirely ensheathed in a layer of perichondrium. The chondrocytes are housed in lacunae. The homogeneous matrix contains collagenous fibres which are masked by the solidified ground substance and are not evident in H & E sections. At a higher magnification, identify the nucleus and cytoplasm of the chondrocytes.