Title: 22.11B: Histology of the Large Intestine - Medicine LibreTexts
Headings: 22.11B: Histology of the Large Intestine
22.11B: Histology of the Large Intestine
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Histology of the Large Intestine

Content: Glandular, simple, columnar epithelial cells whose sole function is to secrete mucin, which dissolves in water to form mucus. Histology of the Large Intestine
Colon biopsy: Micrograph of a colon biopsy. The large intestine, or large bowel, is the last part of the digestive system in vertebrate animals. Its function is to absorb water from the remaining indigestible food matter, and then to pass the useless waste material from the body. The large intestine consists of the cecum, colon, rectum, and anal canal. It starts in the right iliac region of the pelvis, just at or below the right waist, where it is joined to the bottom end of the small intestine. From here it continues up the abdomen, across the width of the abdominal cavity, and then it turns downward, continuing to its endpoint at the anus. The large intestine differs in physical form from the small intestine in being much wider. The longitudinal layer of the muscularis is reduced to three strap-like structures known as the taeniae coli—bands of longitudinal muscle fibers, each about 1/5 in wide.