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Merocrine (or eccrine) is a term used to classify
exocrine gland Exocrine glands are glands that secrete substances on to an epithelial surface by way of a duct. Examples of exocrine glands include sweat, salivary, mammary, ceruminous, lacrimal, sebaceous, prostate and mucous. Exocrine glands are one ...
s and their secretions in the study of
histology Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology which studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at larger structures v ...
. A cell is classified as merocrine if the secretions of that cell are excreted via
exocytosis Exocytosis () is a form of active transport and bulk transport in which a cell transports molecules (e.g., neurotransmitters and proteins) out of the cell ('' exo-'' + ''cytosis''). As an active transport mechanism, exocytosis requires the use ...
from secretory cells into an epithelial-walled duct or ducts and then onto a bodily surface or into the lumen. Merocrine is the most common manner of secretion. The gland releases its product and no part of the gland is lost or damaged (compare holocrine and apocrine). The term eccrine is specifically used to designate merocrine secretions from sweat glands (
eccrine sweat glands Eccrine sweat glands (; from Greek ''ekkrinein'' ' secrete'; sometimes called merocrine glands) are the major sweat glands of the human body, found in virtually all skin, with the highest density in palm and soles, then on the head, but much les ...
), although the term merocrine is often used interchangeably.


Examples

*
Salivary glands The salivary glands in mammals are exocrine glands that produce saliva through a system of ducts. Humans have three paired major salivary glands ( parotid, submandibular, and sublingual), as well as hundreds of minor salivary glands. Salivary gl ...
*
Pancreatic glands The pancreas is an organ of the digestive system and endocrine system of vertebrates. In humans, it is located in the abdomen behind the stomach and functions as a gland. The pancreas is a mixed or heterocrine gland, i.e. it has both an end ...
* Certain
sweat gland Sweat glands, also known as sudoriferous or sudoriparous glands, , are small tubular structures of the skin that produce sweat. Sweat glands are a type of exocrine gland, which are glands that produce and secrete substances onto an epithelial ...
s


References


External links


Diagram at uwa.edu.au
{{Glands Exocrine system