List of distinct cell types in the adult human body
Keratinizing epithelial cells
- Epidermal keratinocyte (differentiating epidermal cell)
- Epidermal basal cell (stem cell)
- Keratinocyte of fingernails and toenails
- Nail bed basal cell (stem cell)
- Medullary hair shaft cell
- Cortical hair shaft cell
- Cuticular hair shaft cell
- Cuticular hair root sheath cell
- Hair root sheath cell of Huxley's layer
- Hair root sheath cell of Henle's layer
- External hair root sheath cell
- Hair matrix cell (stem cell)
Wet stratified barrier epithelial cells
- Surface epithelial cell of stratified squamous epithelium of cornea, tongue, oral cavity, esophagus, anal canal, distal urethra and vagina
- basal cell (stem cell) of epithelia of cornea, tongue, oral cavity, esophagus, anal canal, distal urethra and vagina
- Urinary epithelium cell (lining urinary bladder and urinary ducts)
Exocrine secretory epithelial cells
- Salivary gland mucous cell (polysaccharide-rich secretion)
- Salivary gland serous cell (glycoprotein enzyme-rich secretion)
- Von Ebner's gland cell in tongue (washes taste buds)
- Mammary gland cell (milk secretion)
- Lacrimal gland cell (tear secretion)
- Ceruminous gland cell in ear (wax secretion)
- Eccrine sweat gland dark cell (glycoprotein secretion)
- Eccrine sweat gland clear cell (small molecule secretion)
- Apocrine sweat gland cell (odoriferous secretion, sex-hormone sensitive)
- Gland of Moll cell in eyelid (specialized sweat gland)
- Sebaceous gland cell (lipid-rich sebum secretion)
- Bowman's gland cell in nose (washes olfactory epithelium)
- Brunner's gland cell in duodenum (enzymes and alkaline mucus)
- Seminal vesicle cell (secretes seminal fluid components, including fructose for swimming sperm)
- Prostate gland cell (secretes seminal fluid components)
- Bulbourethral gland cell (mucus secretion)
- Bartholin's gland cell (vaginal lubricant secretion)
- Gland of Littre cell (mucus secretion)
- Uterus endometrium cell (carbohydrate secretion)
- Isolated goblet cell of respiratory and digestive tracts (mucus secretion)
- Stomach lining mucous cell (mucus secretion)
- Gastric gland zymogenic cell (pepsinogen secretion)
- Gastric gland oxyntic cell (HCl secretion)
- Pancreatic acinar cell (bicarbonate and digestive enzyme secretion)
- Paneth cell of small intestine (lysozyme secretion)
- Type II pneumocyte of lung (surfactant secretion)
- Clara cell of lung
Epithelial absorptive cells (Gut, Exocrine Glands and Urogenital Tract)
- Intestinal brush border cell (with microvilli)
- Exocrine gland striated duct cell
- Gall bladder epithelial cell
- Kidney proximal tubule brush border cell
- Kidney distal tubule cell
- Ductulus efferens nonciliated cell
- Epididymal principal cell
- Epididymal basal cell
Metabolism and storage cells
- Hepatocyte (liver cell)
- White fat cell
- Brown fat cell
- Liver lipocyte
Barrier function cells (Lung, Gut, Exocrine Glands and Urogenital Tract)
- Type I pneumocyte (lining air space of lung)
- Pancreatic duct cell (centroacinar cell)
- Nonstriated duct cell (of sweat gland, salivary gland, mammary gland, etc.)
- Kidney glomerulus parietal cell
- Kidney glomerulus podocyte
- Loop of Henle thin segment cell (in kidney)
- Kidney collecting duct cell
- Duct cell (of seminal vesicle, prostate gland, etc.)
Epithelial cells lining closed internal body cavities
- Blood vessel and lymphatic vascular endothelial fenestrated cell
- Blood vessel and lymphatic vascular endothelial continuous cell
- Blood vessel and lymphatic vascular endothelial splenic cell
- Synovial cell (lining joint cavities, hyaluronic acid secretion)
- Serosal cell (lining peritoneal, pleural, and pericardial cavities)
- Squamous cell (lining perilymphatic space of ear)
- Squamous cell (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Columnar cell of endolymphatic sac with microvilli (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Columnar cell of endolymphatic sac without microvilli (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Dark cell (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Vestibular membrane cell (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Stria vascularis basal cell (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Stria vascularis marginal cell (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Cell of Claudius (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Cell of Boettcher (lining endolymphatic space of ear)
- Choroid plexus cell (cerebrospinal fluid secretion)
- Pia-arachnoid squamous cell
- Pigmented ciliary epithelium cell of eye
- Nonpigmented ciliary epithelium cell of eye
- Corneal endothelial cell
Ciliated cells with propulsive function
- Respiratory tract ciliated cell
- Oviduct ciliated cell (in female)
- Uterine endometrial ciliated cell (in female)
- Rete testis cilated cell (in male)
- Ductulus efferens ciliated cell (in male)
- Ciliated ependymal cell of central nervous system (lining brain cavities)
Extracellular matrix secretion cells
- Ameloblast epithelial cell (tooth enamel secretion)
- Planum semilunatum epithelial cell of vestibular apparatus of ear (proteoglycan secretion)
- Organ of Corti interdental epithelial cell (secreting tectorial membrane covering hair cells)
- Loose connective tissue fibroblasts
- Corneal fibroblasts
- Tendon fibroblasts
- Bone marrow reticular tissue fibroblasts
- Other nonepithelial fibroblasts
- Blood capillary pericyte
- Nucleus pulposus cell of intervertebral disc
- Cementoblast/cementocyte (tooth root bonelike cementum secretion)
- Odontoblast/odontocyte (tooth dentin secretion)
- Hyaline cartilage chondrocyte
- Fibrocartilage chondrocyte
- Elastic cartilage chondrocyte
- Osteoblast/osteocyte
- Osteoprogenitor cell (stem cell of osteoblasts)
- Hyalocyte of vitreous body of eye
- Stellate cell of perilymphatic space of ear
Contractile cells
- Red skeletal muscle cell (slow)
- White skeletal muscle cell (fast)
- Intermediate skeletal muscle cell
- nuclear bag cell of Muscle spindle
- nuclear chain cell of Muscle spindle
- Satellite cell (stem cell)
- Ordinary heart muscle cell
- Nodal heart muscle cell
- Purkinje fiber cell
- Smooth muscle cell (various types)
- Myoepithelial cell of iris
- Myoepithelial cell of exocrine glands
- Photoreceptor rod cell of eye
- Photoreceptor blue-sensitive cone cell of eye
- Photoreceptor green-sensitive cone cell of eye
- Photoreceptor red-sensitive cone cell of eye
- Auditory inner hair cell of organ of Corti
- Auditory outer hair cell of organ of Corti
- Type I hair cell of vestibular apparatus of ear (acceleration and gravity)
- Type II hair cell of vestibular apparatus of ear (acceleration and gravity)
- Type I taste bud cell
- Olfactory receptor neuron
- Basal cell of olfactory epithelium (stem cell for olfactory neurons)
- Type I carotid body cell (blood pH sensor)
- Type II carotid body cell (blood pH sensor)
- Merkel cell of epidermis (touch sensor)
- Touch-sensitive primary sensory neurons (various types)
- Cold-sensitive primary sensory neurons
- Heat-sensitive primary sensory neurons
- Pain-sensitive primary sensory neurons (various types)
- Proprioceptive primary sensory neurons (various types)
Autonomic neuron cells
- Cholinergic neural cell (various types)
- Adrenergic neural cell (various types)
- Peptidergic neural cell (various types)
Sense organ and peripheral neuron supporting cells
- Inner pillar cell of organ of Corti
- Outer pillar cell of organ of Corti
- Inner phalangeal cell of organ of Corti
- Outer phalangeal cell of organ of Corti
- Border cell of organ of Corti
- Hensen cell of organ of Corti
- Vestibular apparatus supporting cell
- Type I taste bud supporting cell
- Olfactory epithelium supporting cell
- Schwann cell
- Satellite cell (encapsulating peripheral nerve cell bodies)
- Enteric glial cell
Central nervous system neurons and glial cells
- Neuron cells (large variety of types, still poorly classified)
- Astrocyte glial cell (various types)
- Oligodendrocyte glial cell
Lens cells
- Anterior lens epithelial cell
- Crystallin-containing lens fiber cell
Pigment cells
Nurse cells
