Foveolar cells
Encyclopedia
Foveolar cells are mucus
Mucus
In vertebrates, mucus is a slippery secretion produced by, and covering, mucous membranes. Mucous fluid is typically produced from mucous cells found in mucous glands. Mucous cells secrete products that are rich in glycoproteins and water. Mucous fluid may also originate from mixed glands, which...

 producing cell
Cell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....

s which cover the inside of the stomach
Stomach
The stomach is a muscular, hollow, dilated part of the alimentary canal which functions as an important organ of the digestive tract in some animals, including vertebrates, echinoderms, insects , and molluscs. It is involved in the second phase of digestion, following mastication .The stomach is...

, protecting it from the corrosive nature of gastric acid
Gastric acid
Gastric acid is a digestive fluid, formed in the stomach. It has a pH of 1 to 2 and is composed of hydrochloric acid , and large quantities of potassium chloride and sodium chloride...

. Foveolar cells are also known as surface mucous cells or mucous neck cells, depending on the location. These cells line the gastric mucosa
Gastric mucosa
The gastric mucosa is the mucous membrane layer of the stomach which contains the glands and the gastric pits. In men it is about 1 mm thick and its surface is smooth, soft, and velvety...

 and gastric pits. The mucous secreting cells of the stomach can be distinguished histologically from the intestinal goblet cell
Goblet cell
Goblet cells are glandular simple columnar epithelial cells whose sole function is to secrete mucin, which dissolves in water to form mucus. They use both apocrine and merocrine methods for secretion....

s.

External links

- "Digestive System: Alimentary Canal: fundic stomach, gastric glands, base" - see slide #41
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