Histology first came into use in the 1700s, but is thought to have begun in Italy in the 1600s when scientist Marcello Malpighi experimented with insects, botany and embryology. ‘Tissue’ was first used to describe the different textures of body parts being dissected by an anatomist in 1801.

There are four basic tissue types including Epithelial, Connective, Nervous and Muscle. Each type contains subtypes that look different but share similar characteristics.

Our bodies are made up of around 36 trillion tiny cells that can only be seen under a microscope. Cells group themselves together to make up the tissues and organs of our bodies, a bit like building blocks. Body tissues grow by increasing the number of cells that make them up. Cells in many tissues in the body divide and grow very quickly until we become adults.

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