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Histology Of Skin & Its Appendages Flashcards

1
Q

What is the largest organ of the body?

A

Skin

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2
Q

How much of your body weight is skin?

A

16%

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3
Q

What are the two layers of skin?

A

Epidermis (epithelial)

Dermis (connective tissue)

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4
Q

What are the dermal papillae?

A

Where dermis rises into epidermis

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5
Q

What are epidermal ridges?

A

Where epidermis dips into dermis

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6
Q

Why is the dermal/epidermal junction not flat?

A

Aids adhesion

Layers do not slip and slide easily

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7
Q

What are the functions of the epidermis? (2)

A

Protection (mechanical, chemical, thermal; infection; UV radiation)

Prevent desiccation (waterproof cornified layer)

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8
Q

What are the functions of the dermis? (2)

A

Sensation (touch, heat, pressure)

Thermoregulation (blood flow, sweat, insulation) - with hypodermis

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9
Q

What are the two classifications of skin?

A

Thick

Thin

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10
Q

What is the main difference between thick and thin skin?

A

Thick has no hair follicles

Thin has hair follicles generally

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11
Q

What kind of hair is found on the body skin?

A

Vellus hair - sparse, fine

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12
Q

What kind of hair is found on the scalp?

A

Terminal hair - numerous, closely-packed, coarse

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13
Q

Describe the cell arrangement of the thickest layer of the epidermis

A

Stratified squamous keratinising epithelium

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14
Q

What is the main cell type in the epidermis?

A

Keratinocyte

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15
Q

What is the scientific name for the basal layer?

A

Stratum basale

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16
Q

What shape are the cells in the basal layer?

A

Cuboidal or columnar

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17
Q

What occurs in the basal layer?

A

Cell division

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18
Q

What is the scientific name for the prickle cell layer?

A

Stratum spinosum

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19
Q

Why is it called the prickle cell layer?

A

During slide preparation, the cells are pulled apart but spot desmosomes remain intact

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20
Q

What occurs in the prickle cell layer?

A

Cells enlarge and accumulate large quantities of keratin

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21
Q

How is keratin organised in the prickle cell layer?

A

Organised into filaments and form bundles that converge on desmosomes

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22
Q

What is Pemphigus?

A

Blistering disease due to autoantibodies attacking desmoglein-3

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23
Q

What is the scientific name for the granular layer?

A

Stratum granulosum

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24
Q

What occurs in the granular layer?

A

Cells begin to flatten

Keratohyaline granules appear

Cells synthesise profilaggrin

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25
What does filaggrin do?
Aggregates keratin filaments: Facilitates cell flattening Contributes to barrier function
26
What do filaggrin mutations cause?
Ichthyosis vulgaris Increased risk of eczema, allergic rhinitis, peanut allergy
27
What is the scientific name of the cornified layer?
Stratum corneum
28
What occurs in the cornified layer?
Cells become squamous as keratins become cross-linked by disulfide bridges Cells die, lose organelles and become dehydrated Involucres becomes cross-linked —> cornified envelope
29
Give the name of a membrane-coating granule (/3)
Odland bodies Lamellar bodies Keratinosomes
30
What do membrane-coating granules do?
Fuse together in inter membrane space Form multiple lipid bilayers arranged in sheets Water-tight/permeability barrier
31
How long does it take for a cell to move from the basal layer to the surface of the skin?
25-50 days
32
What do melanocytes produce?
Melanin
33
What is melanin for?
UV protection
34
In what organelle is melanin stored?
Melanosomes
35
Explain the appearance of melanocytes in H&E staining
Clear with dark nucleus Melanosomes are lipid-soluble So are removed in slide preparation
36
Where are melanocytes found?
Basal layer Every 5-10 keratinocytes
37
What gives rise to different races/skin colours?
Activity of melanocytes | NOT quantity
38
Why do epidermal cells arrange melanin as a cap?
Cap over nucleus Protects DNA from UV damage/radiation
39
What causes vitiligo?
Autoantibodies destroy melanocytes
40
What is vitiligo?
Random areas of skin lose pigment
41
What cells other than keratinocytes and melanocytes are present in the skin?
Langerhans cells Merkel cells
42
Where are Langerhans cells found?
Upper prickle layer/beneath granular layer
43
What is the function Langerhans cells?
Immunological defence (process foreign antigen, macrophage-like)
44
How do we stain for Merkel cells?
Antibodies
45
Where are Merkel cells found?
Basal part of epidermis
46
What may be the function of Merkel cells and what suggests this?
Sense perception Sensory nerve processes terminate on these cells
47
What kind of connective tissue is the dermis?
Dense irregular connective tissue
48
What are the two layers of the dermis and how do they differ?
Thinner papillary layer - denser collagen Less dense reticular layer - thicker collagen bundles
49
What are the imaginary lines that collagen in the dermis follow?
Langer’s lines/lines of cleavage
50
What and where are the two plexuses of the dermis?
Subpapillary - superficial Cutaneous - deep
51
What structures aid thermoregulation in the circulation of the dermis?
Arteriovenous shunts
52
What are the two types of corpuscles in the dermis? Where are they in the dermis?
Meissner’s - superficial, sit in dermal papillae Pacinian - deep
53
What do Meissner’s corpuscles detect?
Light touch, pain, heat
54
What do Pacinian corpuscles detect?
Pressure
55
Where are the greatest and smallest densities of Pacinian corpuscles in the body?
Greatest in fingertips Smallest in back
56
What do free nerve endings sense?
Touch, pain, temperature
57
What type of connective tissue is the hypodermis?
Loose
58
What cell is abundant in the hypodermis and allows mobility of skin?
Fat/adipose cells
59
What anchors the dermis to the deep fascia?
Fibrous bands/collagen bundles traversing downwards through hypodermis
60
What type of gland is a sweat gland?
Exocrine
61
What kind of secretion do the majority of sweat glands carry out?
Merocrine (eccrine glands)
62
What is the typical shape of a sweat gland?
Unbranched, coiled, tubular
63
What part of the nervous system innervates sweat glands?
Sympathetic
64
What does the secretory region of an apocrine sweat gland look like under a microscope?
Single layer of cuboidal cells with a layer of myoepithelial cells Large lumen
65
What does the excretory duct of an eccrine sweat gland look like under a microscope?
Double layer of cuboidal cells
66
Where are apocrine sweat glands found and when do they develop?
Axilla and genital regions From puberty
67
What do apocrine sweat glands discharge into?
Hair follicles
68
What kind of sweat is produced by apocrine sweat glands?
Sticky, milky, odourless
69
What kind of sweat is produced by normal sweat glands?
Hypotonic (after reabsorption of NaCl)
70
What causes apocrine sweat to smell?
Microorganism attack
71
What do sebaceous glands secrete?
Sebum
72
What kind of secretion do sebaceous glands carry out?
Holocrine
73
What do sebaceous glands discharge into?
Middle portion of hair follicles
74
What are arrector pili muscles?
Bundle of smooth muscle attached to base of hair follicle (connective tissue sheath)
75
What are the 6 concentric layers in a hair follicle?
Medulla (thick hairs only, lightly keratinised) Cortex (heavily keratinised, polygonal cells) Cuticle (very heavily keratinised scales) Inner root sheath Outer root sheath (contains stem cells, continuous with epidermis) Glassy membrane
76
What is the role of the hair papilla?
Direct hair formation
77
How could you describe hair growth?
Intermittent
78
What is the term for when a hair follicle that has stopped growing for a period?
Quiescence
79
What are the lengths of the growth and rest periods of scalp hair?
Growth = years Rest = 3 months
80
What are the lengths of the growth and rest periods of body hair?
Growth = months Rest = years
81
What does the secretory region of an eccrine sweat gland look like under a microscope?
Stratified cuboidal cells surrounded by a layer of myoepithelial cells Small lumen

BMS08 (7 decks)

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