Apocrine
Apocrine (/ˈæpəkrɪn/) is a term used to classify the mode of secretion of exocrine glands. In apocrine secretion, secretory cells accumulate material at their apical ends, often forming blebs or "snouts", and this material then buds off from the cells, forming extracellular vesicles. The secretory cells therefore lose part of their cytoplasm in the process of secretion.
| Exocrine secretion |
| Merocrine or eccrine – by exocytosis |
| Apocrine – by membrane budding (loss of cytoplasm) |
| Holocrine – by membrane rupture |
An example of true apocrine glands is the mammary glands, responsible for secreting breast milk. Apocrine glands are also found in the anogenital region and axillae.
Apocrine secretion is less damaging to the gland than holocrine secretion (which destroys a cell) but more damaging than merocrine secretion (exocytosis).
- Apocrine secretion
- Apocrine gland
- Histology of apocrine cells, H&E stain.
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