a thin piece of wood or other rigid material used to immobilize a fractured or dislocated bone, or to maintain any part of the body in a fixed position. 2. one of a number of thin strips of wood woven together to make a chair seat, basket, etc.
If you take a close look at epithelial cells using a microscope, you will see them tightly packed together. This helps make a protective barrier for our bodies. There are also some special door-like connections between each epithelial cell called gap junctions. The gap junctions are where the cells exchange nutrients.
Tight junctions are the closely associated areas of two cells whose membranes join together to form a virtually impermeable barrier to fluid. Tight junctions perform vital functionsâsuch as holding cells togetherâand form protective and functional barriers. Tight junctions are composed of a branching network of sealing strands with each strand acting independently from the others. The major types of proteins in junctions are the claudins and the occludins.