06-17-2010

BY HUMAIRA YASEEN IPS,UVAS,LAHORE

Skin: The skin, all 6-10 lb. (~3-4 kg) and 20 square feet in an adult, is a giant, washable, stretchable, tough, waterproof sensory apparatus covering your whole body.

More specifically, the skin consists of

The Epidermal Cells Keratinocytes Merkel cells

the outer epidermis

embryonic ectoderm, and

derived from the which develops

the inner dermis

from the mesoderm.

Melanocytes Langerhans cells

Beneath the dermis is the hypodermis which anchors skin to underlying tissues.

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Dermis Connective tissue: fibroblasts, collagen Blood vessels Nerve supply: sensory and motor The dermis also contains hair follicles, sebaceous glands, and sweat glands.

Body temperature regulation Protection Excretion Blood reservoir Cutaneous sensation Metabolic function

Temperature should within haemostatic limits. When external temperature is lower than body temperature, the skin surface loses heat to the air. Under normal resting conditions, and as long as the environmental temperature is below 3132 (8890F), sweat glands C continuously secrete unnoticeable amounts of sweat [about 500 ml (0.5 L) of

sweat per day]

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When body temperature rises, dermal blood vessels dilate and the sweat glands are stimulated into vigorous secretary activity. Sweat becomes noticeable and can account for the loss of up to 12

L of body water in one day.

When the external environment is cold, dermal blood vessels constrict. This causes the warm blood to bypass the skin temporarily and allows skin temperature to drop to that of the external environment.

Temperature receptors inform the hypothalamus of temperature changes centrally and peripherally and the hypothalamus influences the vaso-motor centre in the brainstem. Sympathetic nerves under the control of the vasomotor centre bring about either vasoconstriction or vasodilation in peripheral blood vessels. Vasoconstriction reduces blood flow close to the surface and thus conserves heat while vasodilation increases blood flow and allows dissipation of excess heat

Heat is lost from the body by radiation, conduction, convection and evaporation of sweat Radiation - the skin radiates heat in the form of infra-red rays and warms nearby objects Conduction - body heat is also transmitted by direct contact to objects in contact Convection - air passing over the skin is warmed. This warm air rises and colder air is drawn in to take its place Evaporation - sweat on the skin surface evaporates and as a result the skin surface is cooled

Sensation The skin contains receptors for

1.touch 2.Pain 3.pressure 4.vibration 5.hair movement 6.Temperature

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skin is richly supplied with cutaneous sensory receptors, which are actually part of the nervous system. exteroceptors because they respond to stimuli arising outside the body.

For example: Meissners corpuscles and Merkel discs allow us to become aware of a caress or the feel of our clothing against our skin.

PACINIAN CORPUSC LE

KRAUS RECEPT ER

Pacinian corpuscles (in the deeper dermis or hypodermis) alert us to bumps or contacts involving deep pressure.
Painful stimuli (irritating chemicals, extreme heat or cold, and others) are sensed by free nerve endings that meander throughout the skin

These Nerve fibers can be slowly/rapidly adapting. In other words, slowly-adapting nerve fibers send information about ongoing stimulation; rapidly-adapting nerve fibers send information related to changing stimuli.

EXAMPLE:
The Pacinian corpuscle receptor : a rapidly-adapting type receptor The Ruffini nerve ending : a slowly-adapting type receptor

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dermal vascular supply can hold large volumes of blood (about 5% of the bodys entire blood volume) When other body organs, such as vigorously working muscles, need a greater blood supply, the nervous system constricts the dermal blood vessels. This shunts more blood into the general circulation, making it available to the muscles and other body organs.

Limited amounts of nitrogen-containing wastes (ammonia, urea, and uric acid) are eliminated from the body in sweat, although most such wastes are excreted in urine. Profuse sweating is an important avenue for water and salt (sodium chloride) loss

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When sunlight bombards the skin, modified cholesterol molecules circulating through dermal blood vessels are converted to a vitamin D precursor, and transported via the blood to other body areas to play various roles in calcium metabolism. For example: calcium cannot be absorbed from the digestive tract without vitamin D.

It makes chemical conversions that supplement those of the liverfor example, keratinocyte enzymes can disarm many cancer-causing chemicals that penetrate the epidermis;

activate some steroid hormones for instance, they can transform cortisone applied to irritated skin into hydrocortisone, a potent anti-inflammatory drug Skin cells also make several biologically important proteins, including collagenase, an enzyme that aids the natural turnover of collagen (and prevents wrinkles).

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Skin barriers:

Chemical Barriers:
include skin secretions and melanin the low pH of skin secretions, or the socalled acid mantle, retards the multiplication of bacteria on skins surface

Chemical Barriers Physical/Mechanical Barriers Biological Barriers

Protection
Chemical Barriers:
Many bacteria are killed outright by bactericidal substances in sebum o Skin cells also secrete a natural antibiotic called human defensin that literally punches holes in bacteria, making them look like sieves. o

Chemical Barriers:
o Wounded skin releases large quantities of protective peptides called cathelicidins that are particularly effective in preventing infection o melanin provides a chemical pigment shield to prevent UV damage to the viable skin cells.

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Physical/Mechanical Barriers:
Provided by the continuity of skin and the hardness of its keratinized cells Substances that do penetrate the skin in limited amounts include: 1.lipid-soluble substances, such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K), and steroids 2.oleoresins of certain plants, such as poison ivy and poison oak 3.organic solvents, such as acetone, dry-cleaning fluid, and paint thinner, which dissolve the cell lipids

Biological Barriers: Langerhanscells of the epidermis macrophages in the dermis DNA

4.salts of heavy metals, such as lead and mercury

1. Langerhans cells are active elements of the immune system. For the immune response to be activated, the foreign substances, or antigens, must be presented to specialized white blood cells called lymphocytes, in epidermis. These cells migrate from skin to lymph nodes. They possess surface receptors common to macrophages function as antigen presenting cells to T or B lymphocytes.

2. Dermal macrophages constitute a second line of defense to dispose of viruses and bacteria that have managed to penetrate the epidermis. They, too, act as antigen presenters.

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Electrons in DNA molecules absorb UV radiation and transfer it to the atomic nuclei, which heat up and vibrate vigorously. However, since the heat dissipates to surrounding water molecules instantaneously, the DNA converts potentially destructive radiation into harmless heat.