The Integumentary

MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]

System.
Histology of the SKIN

SKIN
• aka INTEGUMENT or CUTANEOUS LAYER
• composed of the EPIDERMIS (epithelial layer of ectodermal origin)
and the DERMIS (layer of mesodermal connective tissue) General layer
Hypodermis-technically not part of the skin

They
interlock with each other

Outer layer ↳
-

sub divided
into two

subdivided
into
-

Papillary
~
Reticular

Hypodermis

FUNCTION
• Protective: It provides a physical barrier against thermal and
mechanical insults such as friction and against most potential
Most of the epidermis consists of keratinocytes, which produce the
pathogens and other material.
protein keratin (that protects underlying tissues) and lamellar granules
• Sensory: Many types of sensory receptors allow skin to constantly
(that contain a waterproof sealant).
monitor the environment, and various skin mechanoreceptors help
regulate the body’s interactions with physical objects
• Thermoregulatory: A constant body temperature is normally THICK SKIN THIN SKIN
easily maintained thanks to the skin’s insulating components (eg, • palms and soles • elsewhere on the body
the fatty layer and hair on the head) and its mechanisms for
accelerating heat loss (sweat production and a dense superficial Five Layers: Four Layers:
microvasculature). 1. S. basale 1. S. basale
• Metabolic: Cells of skin synthesize vitamin D3 , needed in calcium 2. S. spinosum 2. S. spinosum
metabolism and proper bone formation, through the local action 3. S. granulosum 3. S. granulosum
of UV light on the vitamin’s precursor. Excess electrolytes can be 4. S. lucidum 4. S. corneum
removed in sweat, and the subcutaneous layer stores a significant 5. S. corneum
amount of energy in the form of fat.
• Sexual signaling: Many features of skin, such as pigmentation and
hair, are visual indicators of health involved in attraction between
the sexes in all vertebrate species, including humans. Th e effects
of sex pheromones produced by the apocrine sweat glands and
other skin glands are also important for this attraction.

EPIDERMIS
Outermost Layer of the skin
consists mainly of a stratified squamous keratinized epithelium dead
• Keratinocytes gives protection
us
cells

• Melanocytes (pigment-producing) to protect the cells to UV

• Langerhans cells (antigen-presenting) they are part of the
immune system

• Merkel cells (tactile epithelial cells) sensory organ

Señora, Andreason M. MED224 1

Epidermis Layers.
MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]
Thick skin and thin skin layers
STRATUM LUCIDUM (CLEAR LAYER)
STRATUM BASALE (BASAL LAYER) • found only in thick skin (palms and soles
• consists of a thin, translucent layer of flattened eosinophilic
• aka stratum germinativum
keratinocytes held together by desmosomes
• single layer of basophilic cuboidal or columnar cells on the
basement membrane at the dermal-epidermal junction
Dividing of cells
• characterized by intense mitotic activity and contains, along with
the deepest part of the next layer, progenitor cells for all the
epidermal layers

STRATUM SPINOSUM (SPINOUS LAYER)

• aka prickle cell layer - due to the cytoplasmic extensions spiny
emanating from the keratinocytes
• consists of generally polyhedral cells having central nuclei with
nucleoli and cytoplasm actively synthesizing keratins
• The keratinocytes appear polyhedral but become more flattened STRATUM CORNEUM
near the surface of this layer
• aka cornified layer
• Consists on average of 25 to 30 layers of flattened dead
SS 3 SB
keratinocytes cause malayo na sila sa source of nutrients
both
are
• The cells, which are extremely thin, flat, plasma membrane-
Keratinocytes enclosed packages of keratin, are called corneocytes or squames.
• cells are continuously shed and replaced by cells from the deeper
strata.
• Its multiple layers of dead cells help the stratum corneum to
protect deeper layers from injury and microbial invasion.
• Constant exposure of skin to friction stimulates increased cell
production and keratin production, and that results in the
formation of a callus, an abnormal thickening of the stratum
corneum.
STRATUM GRANULOSUM (GRANULAR LAYER)
• consists of three to five layers of flattened cells, now undergoing
the terminal differentiation process of keratinization
• presence of non-membrane-bound keratohyalin granules
• contains lamellar bodies (membrane-coating granules) which are
released by exocytosis into the extracellular space

make
granules
them appear
darker

Señora, Andreason M. MED224 2

Dermis.
MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]
• layer of connective tissue that supports the epidermis and binds it
Sweat Oil Hair Goosebumps
to the subcutaneous tissue (hypodermis)
• Sweat glands, sebaceous glands, hair follicles, and arrector pili
• surface of the dermis is very irregular and has many projections
(dermal papillae) that interdigitate with projections (epidermal
(smooth muscle attached to hair follicles) is found within the deep
dermis. pulls the hairon
T
pegs or ridges) of the epidermis
• Several encapsulated mechanoreceptors are located in the
Ridges or waves
purpose is for better adhesion of epidermis and dermis
deepest portions of the dermis: pacinian corpuscles (pressure
Two sublayers:
and vibration), Ruffini corpuscles (tensile forces, most abundant
1. papillary
in soles of feet), Krause end bulbs (for detection of low-frequency
2. reticular
vibrations/movements). The panniculus adiposus is found deep
to the reticular layer.

outer

Middle

Inner

PAPILLARY LAYER
areolar
• includes the dermal papillae, consists of loose connective tissue,
with types I and III collagen fibers, fibroblasts and scattered mast
cells, macrophages, and other leukocytes.
• anchoring fibrils of type VII collagen insert into the basal lamina,
helping to bind the dermis to the epidermis
HYPODERMIS
RETICULAR LAYER • Subcutaneous layer or superficial fascia
• serves as a storage depot for fat and contains large blood
• thicker, consists of dense irregular connective tissue (mainly
vessels that supply and drain the capillaries of the skin
bundles of type I collagen)
• consists of loose connective tissue that binds the skin loosely to
• more fibers and fewer cells than the papillary layer
the subjacent organs, making it possible for the skin to slide over
• with a network of elastic fibers providing elasticity to the skin
them
• contains adipocytes that vary in number in different body regions
and vary in size according to nutritional state.

HYPODERMIS FUNCTION
• Unites the skin’s upper layers to the deeper layers.
• Shock Absorption.
• Metabolism.
• Layer of insulation that helps retard heat loss from the body

Señora, Andreason M. MED224 3

Sensory Receptors.
MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]

NO CAPSULE
UNENCAPSULATED RECEPTORS
• Merkel cells - tonic receptors for sustained light touch and for
sensing an object’s texture.
• Free nerve endings - respond primarily to high and low
temperatures, pain, and itching, but also function as tactile
receptors.
• Root hair plexuses - a web of sensory fibers surrounding the
bases of hair follicles in the reticular dermis that detects
movements of the hairs.
WITH CAPSULE
ENCAPSULATED RECEPTORS
• Meissner corpuscles - initiate impulses when light touch or low-
frequency stimuli against skin temporarily deform their shape.
They are numerous in the fingertips, palms, and soles but decline
slowly in number during aging after puberty.
• Lamellated (pacinian) corpuscles - found deep in the reticular
dermis and hypodermis, specialized for sensing coarse touch,
pressure (sustained touch), and vibrations, with distortion of the
capsule amplifying a mechanical stimulus to the axonal core where
an impulse is initiated.
• Krause end bulbs - are simpler encapsulated, ovoid structures,
with extremely thin, collagenous capsules penetrated by a sensory
fiber. They are found primarily in the skin of the penis and clitoris
where they sense low frequency vibrations.
• Ruffini corpuscles - have collagenous, fusiform capsules anchored
firmly to the surrounding connective tissue, either sensory axons
stimulated by stretch (tension) or twisting (torque) in the skin.

Señora, Andreason M. MED224 4

Accessory Structures of
MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]

the Skin.
• Accessory structures of the skin—hair, skin glands, and nails—
develop from the embryonic epidermis.
• They have a host of important functions.
• For example, hair and nails protect the body, and sweat glands
help regulate body temperature.
HAIR
• Hairs, or pili, are present on most skin surfaces except the palms,
palmar surfaces of the fingers, the soles, and plantar surfaces of
the feet.
•
NAILS
Nails are plates of tightly packed, hard, dead, keratinized
epidermal cells that form a clear, solid covering over the dorsal
surfaces of the distal portions of the digits.
• Each nail consists of a nail body, a free edge, and a nail root.
• The nail body (plate) is the visible portion of the nail.
• The free edge is the part of the nail body that may extend past
the distal end of the digit. The free edge is white because there
are no underlying capillaries.
art
Free edge

y
• Although the protection it offers is limited, hair on the head
guards the scalp from injury and the sun’s rays.
• It also decreases heat loss from the scalp.
• Eyebrows and eyelashes protect the eyes from foreign particles, as
does hair in the nostrils and in the external ear canal.

ANATOMY OF A HAIR
• The shaft is the superficial portion
of the hair, which projects above the
surface of the skin.
• The root is the portion of the hair
deep to the shaft that penetrates
into the dermis, and sometimes into
the subcutaneous layer.
• The shaft and root of the hair both
consist of three concentric layers of
• The nail root is the portion of the nail that is buried in a fold of
cells: medulla, cortex, and cuticle
skin.
of the hair.
• The whitish, crescent-shaped area of the proximal end of the nail
• Cuticle of the hair, the outermost
body is called the lunula.
layer, consists of a single layer of
• The proximal portion of the epithelium deep to the nail root is the
thin, flat cells that are the most
nail matrix, where cells divide by mitosis to produce growth.
heavily keratinized

capillaries

• Surrounding the root of the hair is the hair follicle, which is made
up of an external root sheath and an internal root sheath, together
referred to as an epithelial root sheath.
• The dense dermis surrounding the hair follicle is called the dermal
root sheath.
• The base of each hair follicle and its surrounding dermal root
sheath is an onion-shaped structure, the bulb.

Señora, Andreason M. MED224 5

Skin Glands.
Two types of Skin Glands are present:
1. Sebaceous (Oil) Glands
2. Sudoriferous (Sweat) Glands
Skin includes three major
types of exocrine glands.
Sebaceous glands are
usually part of a
pilosebaceous unit with a
hair follicle and secrete oily
sebum into the space around
the hair root.
Thermoregulatory eccrine
sweat glands empty their
secretion onto the skin
surface via sweat pores.
Apocrine sweat glands
secrete a more protein-rich
sweat into the follicles of hair
in skin of the axillae and
perineum.
SEBACEOUS (OIL) GLANDS
pa-bulb
• Sebaceous glands or oil glands are simple, branched acinar
glands.
• They are connected to hair follicles.
• The secreting portion of a sebaceous gland lies in the dermis and
usually opens into the neck of a hair follicle.
-
• Sebaceous glands secrete an oily substance called sebum, a
mixture of triglycerides, cholesterol, proteins, and inorganic salts.
-
• Sebum coats the surface of hairs and helps keep them from drying
and becoming brittle. Sebum also prevents excessive evaporation
of water from the skin, keeps the skin soft.
Señora, Andreason M. MED224
MLSHUHIC
HUMAN
HISTOLOGY
[LEC]
SUDORIFEROUS GLANDS
• There are three to four million sweat glands, or sudoriferous
glands.
• The cells of these glands release sweat, or perspiration, into hair
follicles or onto the skin surface through pores.
• Sweat glands are divided into two main types, eccrine and
apocrine, based on their structure, location, and type of secretion.
• Eccrine sweat glands , also known as merocrine sweat glands, are
simple, coiled tubular glands that are much more common than
apocrine sweat glands
• They are distributed throughout the skin of most regions of the
body, especially in the skin of the forehead, palms, and soles.
• Eccrine sweat glands are not present, however, in the margins of
the lips, nail beds of the fingers and toes,and eardrums.
• The secretory portion of eccrine sweat glands is located mostly in
the deep dermis (sometimes in the upper subcutaneous layer)
• The sweat produced by eccrine sweat glands (about 600 mL per
day) consists of water, ions (mostly Na and Cl), urea, uric acid,
ammonia, amino acids, glucose, and lactic acid.
• &
The main function of eccrine sweat glands is to help regulate body
temperature through evaporation.
• Apocrine sweat glands are also simple, coiled tubular glands.
• Eccrine sweat glands start to function soon after birth, but
apocrine sweat glands do not begin to function until puberty.
• Apocrine sweat contains the same components as eccrine sweat
plus lipids and proteins. Apocrine not widely distributed
-
ECCRINE
widely distributed sa body
.
Ex Braso , liked face
. ,
A POCRINE
kili-kili
can be seen sa ,
public area
• Pale-staining clear cells produce the sweat, having abundant
mitochondria and microvilli to provide large surface areas.
• Dark cells filled with strongly eosinophilic granules line most of
the lumen and do not contact the basal lamina.The granules
undergo merocrine secretion to release a poorly understood
mixture of glycoproteins with bactericidal activity.
• Myoepithelial cells on the basal contract to move the watery
secretion into the duct.
CERUMINOUS GLANDS
• Modified sweat glands in the external ear, called ceruminous
glands, produce a waxy lubricating secretion.
• The combined secretion of the ceruminous and sebaceous glands
is a yellowish material called cerumen, or earwax.
• Cerumen also waterproofs the canal and prevents bacteria and
fungi from entering cells.
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