• Question: What part of the body has the most cells on/ in it?

    Asked by Popz04 to Amanda on 6 Mar 2017.
    • Photo: Amanda Barnes

      Amanda Barnes answered on 6 Mar 2017:

      That’s a hard question to answer! I’m not sure of the exact answer, and it will depend on the age of an individual and the health of different parts of the body.

      Each organ in the body is made up of a combination of cells and a supporting structure of proteins called the extracellular matrix.

      Tissues like cartilage and bone have lots of matrix and fewer cells, whereas organs in our immune system don’t have much matrix and are mainly composed of cells. I’ve dissected a Lymph node before are they are literally like a bag of cells and not much else. The spleen is very similar as well, and on infection these organs contain even more cells as your body tries to fight the infection.

      Your skin is also your largest organ and made up of layers of cells to make a barrier, and therefore might have the most.

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