Sloughing may refer to the act of shedding or casting off dead tissue, such as cells of the endometrium

Endometrium

-Function:The endometrium is the innermost glandular layer and functions as a lining for the uterus, preventing adhesions between the opposed walls of the myometrium, thereby maintaining the patency of the uterine cavity. During the menstrual cycle or estrous cycle, the endometrium grows to a...

, shed during menstruation

Menstruation

Menstruation is the shedding of the uterine lining . It occurs on a regular basis in sexually reproductive-age females of certain mammal species. This article focuses on human menstruation.-Overview:...

. It may also refer to the process where necrotic surface epithelial cells are discarded from the small intestinal mucosa following various infections which may occur within both monogastrics or ruminant

Ruminant

A ruminant is a mammal of the order Artiodactyla that digests plant-based food by initially softening it within the animal's first compartment of the stomach, principally through bacterial actions, then regurgitating the semi-digested mass, now known as cud, and chewing it again...

. Sloughing also occurs in root growth, where cells from the root cap

Root cap

The root cap is a section of tissue at the tip of a plant root. It is also called calyptra. Root caps contain statocytes which are involved in gravity perception in plants. If the cap is carefully removed the root will grow randomly. The root cap protects the growing tip in plants...

 are shed to the soil where they are biologically processed by microorganisms.

See also

• Desquamation
  Desquamation
  Desquamation , also called skin peeling, is the shedding of the outermost membrane or layer of a tissue, such as the skin.-Skin:Normal, nonpathologic desquamation of the skin occurs when keratinocytes, after moving apically over about 14 days, are individually shed unnoticeably...
  
  , pathologic or non-pathologic skin shedding.
• Ecdysis
  Ecdysis
  Ecdysis is the moulting of the cuticula in many invertebrates. This process of moulting is the defining feature of the clade Ecdysozoa, comprising the arthropods, nematodes, velvet worms, horsehair worms, rotifers, tardigrades and Cephalorhyncha...
  
  , Shedding of the skin or exoskeleton, mainly in Arthropoda
• Moulting, biological shedding in many species