Intestinal gland
![Colonic crypts (intestinal glands) within four tissue sections. In panel A the bar shows 100 µm and allows an estimate of the frequency of crypts in the colonic epithelium. Panel B includes three crypts in cross-section, each with one segment deficient for CCOI expression and at least one crypt, on the right side, undergoing fission into two crypts. Panel C shows, on the left side, a crypt fissioning into two crypts. Panel D shows typical small clusters of two and three CCOI deficient crypts (the bar shows 50 µm). The images were made from original photomicrographs, but panels A, B and D were also included in an article[4]](/uploads/202501/20/Colonic_crypts_within_four_tissue_sections1623.jpg)
In histology, an intestinal gland (also crypt of Lieberkühn and intestinal crypt) is a gland found in the intestinal epithelium lining of the small intestine and large intestine (colon). The glands and intestinal villi are covered by epithelium which contains multiple types of cells: enterocytes (absorbing water and electrolytes), goblet cells (secreting mucus), enteroendocrine cells (secreting hormones), cup cells, tuft cells and, at the base of the gland, Paneth cells (secreting anti-microbial peptides) and stem cells. These cells are not all present in the colon.