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Adult Skeletal System

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Introduction The adult human skeletal system consists of 206 bones, but the skeletal system is much more than just bones. It also includes the network of tendons, ligaments and cartilage that connects them. Bones aren’t just solid white lumps of calcium, there are various elements that make up a single bone. A typical bone has a dense and thin yet tough outer layer, called the periosteum. Periosteum consists of an outer fibrous connective tissue layer, and an inner osteogenic layer. The fibrous layer is made of dense and irregular connective tissue containing many strong collagen fibres and fibroblast cells. Fibroblasts produce the collagen fibres and regenerate the fibrous layer as it wears down over time, or is injured by stress to the …show more content…

But it has other functions that include locomotion (in cooperation with muscles), which is the moving of the body. The bones also store our body’s supply of calcium and phosphorous, but perhaps the most important function takes place in the bone marrow. Bone marrow contains two main types of stem cells, which are unspecialised cells that can develop into any type of body cell, called haematopoietic and mesenchymal stem cells. Haematopoietic stem cells are responsible for the production of red blood cells, whereas mesenchymal stem cells’ main function is to produce the non-blood-cell components of marrow, including fat, cartilage, fibrous connective tissue (found in tendons and ligaments), stromal cells that support blood formation, and bone …show more content…

In leukaemia, the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells. These irregular cells attack the healthy white blood cells, affecting the function of the white blood cells. This disease can have a fatal effect, as well as being a type of cancer, the white blood cells’ primary function- to fight infections- is disrupted. This means that a person affected by leukaemia is more prone to dying from preventable or curable diseases, such as pneumonia, because their immune system has been weakened. There are various treatments available for leukaemia, but the type of treatment actually delivered to a patient depends on their individual circumstances. In most cases of acute leukaemia, treatment is started immediately after the disease is

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