Lumen (anatomy)
Cross section of the gut. The lumen is the space in the middle.
In biology, a lumen (plural lumina) is the inside space of a tubular structure, such as an artery or intestine.[1] It comes from Latin lumen, meaning 'an opening'.
It can refer to:
- The interior of a vessel, such as the central space in an artery or vein through which blood flows.
- The interior of the gastrointestinal tract[2]
- The pathways of the bronchi in the lungs
- The interior of renal tubules and urinary collecting ducts
- The pathways of the female genital tract, starting with a single pathway of the vagina, splitting up in two lumina in the uterus, both of which continue through the fallopian tubes
In cell biology, a lumen is a membrane-defined space that is found inside several organelles, cellular components, or structures:
thylakoid, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, lysosome, mitochondrion, or microtubule
Transluminal procedures
Transluminal procedures are procedures occurring through lumina, including:
Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery in the lumina of, for example the stomach, vagina, bladder, or colon
- Procedures through the lumina of blood vessels, such as various interventional radiology procedures:
- Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty
- Percutaneous transluminal commissurotomy
- Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty
See also
Foramen, any anatomical opening- Thylakoid lumen
References
^ Stedman's Medical Dictionary, 24th ed.
^ Adds, John; Erica Larkcom; Ruth Miller. Exchange and transport, energy and ecosystems. Nelson Advanced science (Nelson Thornes). p. 16. ISBN 0-7487-7487-4..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
