Which connective tissue type is described as having collagen fibers in a meshwork arranged in multiple directions?

Which connective tissue type is described as having collagen fibers in a meshwork arranged in multiple directions?

• A. Dense regular connective tissue
• B. Elastic connective tissue
• C. Dense irregular connective tissue
• D. Reticular connective tissue

Answer: (C)

The important idea is how fiber arrangement in connective tissue determines how it handles stress. When collagen fibers are woven in an irregular, interlacing mesh that runs in many directions, the tissue gains strength against forces coming from different angles. This is dense irregular connective tissue. It isn’t built for pull in just one direction—that would be dense regular tissue where fibers run in parallel. It also isn’t primarily elastic tissue, which is packed with elastic fibers for stretch and recoil. And while reticular tissue does form a network, it uses a fine reticular (thin collagen) fiber mesh specialized to support cells in organs, not the thick collagen mesh typical of dense irregular tissue. So the described multi-directional mesh of collagen fibers fits dense irregular connective tissue.

The important idea is how fiber arrangement in connective tissue determines how it handles stress. When collagen fibers are woven in an irregular, interlacing mesh that runs in many directions, the tissue gains strength against forces coming from different angles. This is dense irregular connective tissue. It isn’t built for pull in just one direction—that would be dense regular tissue where fibers run in parallel. It also isn’t primarily elastic tissue, which is packed with elastic fibers for stretch and recoil. And while reticular tissue does form a network, it uses a fine reticular (thin collagen) fiber mesh specialized to support cells in organs, not the thick collagen mesh typical of dense irregular tissue. So the described multi-directional mesh of collagen fibers fits dense irregular connective tissue.