ciliated columnar cell of tracheobronchial tree
Go to external page http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/CL_0002145
A multi-ciliated epithelial cell located in the trachea and bronchi, characterized by a columnar shape and motile cilia on its apical surface. These cilia facilitate mucociliary clearance by moving mucus and trapped particles toward the pharynx. [ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28400610 GOC:tfm ]
Term information
- FMA:70542
cellxgene_subset, human_reference_atlas
These cells possess numerous cilia on their surface, typically ranging from 200 to 300 per cell. The cilia vary in length, measuring between 6 to 7 μm in the upper airways (trachea) and becoming shorter, around 4 μm, in the smaller airways (terminal bronchioles). These cells form a two-layered 'coat' in the airway: the lower 'sol' layer is watery, allowing the cilia to beat in coordinated waves, while the upper 'gel' layer is thick and sticky, trapping inhaled particles.