What does follicular epithelial cells mean?
Thyroid follicular cells (also called thyroid epithelial cells or thyrocytes) are the major cell type in the thyroid gland, and are responsible for the production and secretion of the thyroid hormones thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3).
What are follicular cells in a thyroid nodule?
The word follicular means the cells look like a group of small circles under a microscope. If the follicular cells are contained within the nodule, the condition is called benign. If the cells have invaded the surrounding tissue, the diagnosis is cancer. Thyroid cysts are nodules filled with fluid.
What hormone is secreted by follicular cells?
These follicular cells are the derivates of the endoderm and secrete thyroid hormone. The circulating form of this hormone is thyroxine, which is tetraiodothyronine (T4) along with a small quantity of triiodothyronine (T3).
How can you tell the difference between follicular adenoma and carcinoma?
A follicular carcinoma cannot be distinguished from a follicular adenoma based on cytologic features alone. It is distinguished from a follicular adenoma on the basis of capsular invasion, vascular invasion, extrathyroidal tumor extension, lymph node metastases, or systemic metastases.
What are follicular cells and colloid?
The follicles are lined with follicular cells and are filled with a fluid known as colloid that contains the prohormone thyroglobulin. The follicular cells contain the enzymes needed to synthesize thyroglobulin, as well as the enzymes needed to release thyroid hormone from thyroglobulin.
Where are follicular cells found?
the thyroid gland
Thyroid follicular cell, found in the thyroid gland. Granulosa cell, found in the follicles around oocytes. Follicular dendritic cell, found in the follicles of lymphoid tissue. Follicular B cell, found in the follicles of lymphoid tissue.
What does benign follicular cells mean?
Benign follicular nodule is a term pathologists use to describe a group of non-cancerous conditions in the thyroid gland. This diagnosis is usually made after a procedure called a fine-needle aspiration or FNA. All the conditions in this group are made up of cells that look similar when examined under the microscope.
What hormone is stored in colloid?
Surrounded by a wall of epithelial follicle cells, the colloid is the center of thyroid hormone production, and that production is dependent on the hormones’ essential and unique component: iodine.
Can a nuclear groove be a nonspecific feature?
Nuclear grooves alone are nonspecific and can be seen in a variety of neoplastic and non-neoplastic cells, including macrophages and benign follicular cells. However, they become an important diagnostic feature when associated with an oval, enlarged nucleus with fine chromatin.
Where are nuclear grooves found in the body?
They are often parallel to the long axis of the oval nuclei, giving a “coffee bean” appearance (see Figure 9.5). Nuclear grooves alone are nonspecific and can be seen in a variety of neoplastic and non-neoplastic cells, including macrophages and benign follicular cells.
Why are there nuclear grooves in thyroid carcinoma?
Last Updated on Fri, 07 Sep 2018 | Thyroid Carcinoma. The presence of extensive nuclear grooves is a common finding in PTC, caused by an infolding of the nuclear membrane. Nuclear grooves are present in nearly all cases of PTC, but they may be sparse in up to 25% of cases.
What is the microfollicular pattern of a thyroid nodule?
Benign thyroid nodules are characterized microscopically by a macrofollicular pattern which features large flat sheets of follicular cells with small dark round nuclei in a honeycomb arrangement, usually in a background of moderate to abundant colloid (Fig.