What is Hypertrophy?
[[File:1848 lam aua hypertrophy.jpg|thumb|Hypertrophy of the human breast, painting of 1848/49]] In biology, '''hypertrophy''' is the increase in size of an [[Organ (anatomy)|organ]], beyond normal growth. Hypertrophy happens because the [[Cell|cells]] grow bigger. The condition where an organ is bigger, because there are more cells is called [[hyperplasia]]. [[Image:Hypertrophy.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Normal cells (A), Hypertrophy (B), Hyperplasia (C) and combination (D).]] Some cells like [[adipocyte]]s (fat cells) get larger by expanding outward while filling up with more [[lipid]] contents, while [[myocyte]]s (muscle cells) can fuse with other myocytes to form huge myotube cells. [[Organ (anatomy)|Organs]] or [[Tissue (biological)|tissues]] can grow larger due to the enlargement of their component [[Cell (biology)|cells]]. One of the most common and visible forms of normal, organ hypertrophy occurs in [[Skeletal muscle|skeletal muscles]] in response to [[strength training]] or [[bodybuilding]]. In contrast, tissues and organs can also get larger by another mechanism, hyperplasia, in which the cells remain approximately the same size but increase in [[number]]. Although hypertrophy and hyperplasia are two distinct processes, they frequently occur together. The [[hormone|hormonally]]-induced proliferation and enlargement of the cells of the [[uterus]] during [[pregnancy]] is an example of this combination under normal conditions. In some tumors, enlargement can occur by an increase in the number of cells together with the occurrence of some abnormally large cells. ==Other websites== *[http://muscle.ucsd.edu/musintro/hypertrophy.shtml University of California Muscle Physiology Home Page: Hypertrophy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210421192506/http://muscle.ucsd.edu/Musintro/hypertrophy.shtml |date=2021-04-21 }} [[Category:Medical signs]] [[Category:Human body features]]