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Sebaceous glands secrete the skin lubricant sebum. Sebum is secreted onto the hair shaft and it prevents the hair from splitting. It consists mostly of lipids. After the sebum spreads along and up the hair shaft, it is distributed over the skin surface where it lubricates and waterproofs the outer layer of the skin, the stratum corneum. [1] [2]
The acid mantle is a very thin, delicate, slightly acidic film covering the entire surface of human skin, serving as a protective barrier against pathogens and reduces body odor. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] The acidic pH at the skin's surface mainly maintained by free amino acids and α-hydroxy acids ( lactic acids ) excreted from sweat ; free fatty acids and ...
The sebaceous glands of a human fetus secrete a substance called vernix caseosa, a waxy, translucent white substance coating the skin of newborns. [7] After birth, activity of the glands decreases until there is almost no activity during ages two–six years, and then increases to a peak of activity during puberty , due to heightened levels of ...
The skin's protective acid mantle and lipid barrier sit on top of the stratum disjunctum. [5] The stratum disjunctum is the uppermost and loosest layer of skin. The stratum compactum is the comparatively deeper, more compacted and more cohesive part of the stratum corneum. [ 6 ]
Keratin (/ ˈ k ɛr ə t ɪ n / [1] [2]) is one of a family of structural fibrous proteins also known as scleroproteins. It is the key structural material making up scales, hair, nails, feathers, horns, claws, hooves, and the outer layer of skin in vertebrates. Keratin also protects epithelial cells from damage or stress. Keratin is extremely ...
The epidermis is the outermost of the three layers that comprise the skin, the inner layers being the dermis and hypodermis. [1] The epidermal layer provides a barrier to infection from environmental pathogens [2] and regulates the amount of water released from the body into the atmosphere through transepidermal water loss.
In terms of surface area, the skin is the second largest organ in the human body (the inside of the small intestine is 15 to 20 times larger). For the average adult human, the skin has a surface area of 1.5–2.0 square metres (15–20 sq ft).
Eccrine glands are active in thermoregulation by providing cooling from water evaporation of sweat secreted by the glands on the body surface and emotionally induced sweating (anxiety, fear, stress, and pain). [6] [7] The white sediment in otherwise colorless eccrine secretions is caused by evaporation that increases the concentration of salts.