Which tissue type is indicated by a sample showing a single layer of cube-shaped cells with round nuclei?

Which tissue type is indicated by a sample showing a single layer of cube-shaped cells with round nuclei?

• A. Simple columnar epithelium
• B. Transitional epithelium
• C. Simple squamous epithelium
• D. Simple cuboidal epithelium

Answer: (D)

Understanding how epithelial tissues are described helps you identify them. When a tissue is described as a single layer, that means it’s simple epithelium. If the cells are cube-shaped, that’s cuboidal. Observing round, centered nuclei fits with cuboidal cells, which tend to have a roughly equal height and width and a central nucleus. So a single layer of cube-shaped cells with round nuclei corresponds to simple cuboidal epithelium. This type lines kidney tubules and many gland ducts, supporting absorption and secretion. For comparison: simple squamous would show flat, pancake-like cells with flattened nuclei; simple columnar would have tall, column-like cells with elongated nuclei often near the base; transitional epithelium is stratified and can change shape as it stretches, so it isn’t a single layer of cuboidal cells.

Understanding how epithelial tissues are described helps you identify them. When a tissue is described as a single layer, that means it’s simple epithelium. If the cells are cube-shaped, that’s cuboidal. Observing round, centered nuclei fits with cuboidal cells, which tend to have a roughly equal height and width and a central nucleus. So a single layer of cube-shaped cells with round nuclei corresponds to simple cuboidal epithelium. This type lines kidney tubules and many gland ducts, supporting absorption and secretion.

For comparison: simple squamous would show flat, pancake-like cells with flattened nuclei; simple columnar would have tall, column-like cells with elongated nuclei often near the base; transitional epithelium is stratified and can change shape as it stretches, so it isn’t a single layer of cuboidal cells.