In the parathyroid gland, the parathyroid oxyphil cell is larger and paler than the parathyroid chief cell.
These cells can be found in clusters in the center of the section and at the periphery. Oxyphil cells appear at the onset of puberty, but have no known function. With nuclear medicine scans, they selectively take up the Technetium-sestamibi complex radiotracer dye to allow delineation of glandular anatomy.
Famous quotes containing the word cell:
“Let man consider what he is in comparison with all existence; let him regard himself as lost in this remote corner of nature; and from the little cell in which he finds himself lodged, I mean the universe, let him estimate at their true value the earth, kingdoms, cities, and himself. What is a man in the infinite?”
—Blaise Pascal (1623–1662)