HLSC 1200U Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Epiphyseal Plate, Hyaline Cartilage, Periosteum
18 Oct 2016
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Document Summary
The primary purpose of the epiphyseal plate is to lengthen long bones. The epiphyseal plate or the growth plate is made of hyaline cartilage plate that is found at the end of a long bone. This plate is only found in young children and adolescents (the growing ages). In adults, their bones are all fully formed and therefore they don"t need the epiphyseal plate and is instead replaced by the epiphyseal line. Notice that in the immature growth plate there is a space which proves to show that there will be future growth in that individual whereas in the mature one there is no room for future growth. This shows that the immature growth plate on the left is that of a child while the one on the right, mature, is that of an adult. The cells that produce the organic matrix in the bones are the osteoblasts. An osteoblast is a cell that secretes the matrix for bone formation.
