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This image shows part of the thyroid (thy) and parathyroid (par) glands. The thyroid gland is easy to identify because its tissue is arranged in follicles. Each follicle looks like a pink spot surrounded by a purple line. If you can recognize the thryoid, then you can identify the parathyroid based on its location right next to the thyroid. |
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The functional cells of the parathyroid gland are called chief cells. In the image, the purple spots are the nuclei of chief cells. Oxyphil cells, if they are present--which they are not in this image--can be identified because they are larger and have more cytoplasm than the chief cells. |
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