medullary cavity
Marrow's skeletal chamber
The medullary cavity is the hollow center of a long bone, filled with bone marrow.
In adults, it contains mostly yellow marrow (fat), while red marrow (which produces blood cells) retreats to the bone ends.
The cavity lightens the skeleton without sacrificing strength: The medullary cavity of the femur runs nearly its entire length.
- bone marrowBlood cell birthplace
- marrowSoft bone interior
- boneHard skeletal tissue
- hollowEmpty within
- hollow coreCenter deliberately left empty
femur · tibia · long bones · yellow · red · fatty tissue · fat · shaft · spongy · cortical · hematopoiesis · blood cells · skeleton · long bone · osseous · humerus · adipose · stem cells
- body cavitiesspinal canal, posterior chamber, ventricle, ventricles, amniotic sac
- bone anatomyspongy bone, bone marrow, epiphysis, periosteum, long bone
- bone biologybone tissue, osteoblasts, osteoid, bone formation, ossification
- femur partscondyles
- skeletal openingsforamen, foramen ovale, mental foramen, infraorbital foramen, spinal canal
- bird boneswishbone, pneumatic bones