organ
organ The body's organs are discrete aggregations of different types of cells and connective tissue, formed into integrated structures with dedicated functions. Thus for example the heart has muscle, valves, electrically active pacemaker cells, and conducting fibres, all co-ordinated for pumping action; the eye has a ‘window’, a lens, and a retina, co-ordinated in the function of focusing images and relaying information about light and colour. The thoracic organs are the heart and lungs; the abdominal organs are the liver, spleen, kidneys, stomach, and intestines; the pelvic organs are the bladder and rectum, plus the uterus, tubes, and ovaries in the female, or prostate and seminal vesicles in the male. All body components are covered by the terms ‘organs and tissues’.
Stuart Judge
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