HUMAN BODY

INTEGUMENT

The Integument
Intro
The Integumentary system is simply the skin. Your Skin is very important
to maintaining homeostasis in your body. The Integument consists of the hair ,
nails , and the skin. There are five major functions of the skin which includes:
1. Maintaining Body Temperature
2. Regulation of water loss
3. Physical Barrier against injury and infection
4. Sensory perception
5. Chemical Synthesis

Functions
1. Maintaining Body Temperature
a. Your Skin is very efficient when it comes to controlling body
temperature. When your body falls below a certain temperature your
body triggers the Arrector Pilli which pulls your hair follicles making
them stand on end. The skin also pulls in Blood vessels to conserve
heat. However when the Body gets hot , our sudoriferous glands
automatically start sweating , cooling your body. The blood vessels
begin to expand and move toward the surface , helping circulation
and speeding up the cooling process.
2. Regulation of Water Loss
a. The Integument prevents excessive loss of water.
3. Physical Barrier against injury and infection
a. The Skin itself prevents infection and injury. It is a physical barrier to
infection and prevent microbes from entering the skin.
4. Sensory Perception
a. In the skin are millions of sensory perceptors that give you sensation
of feeling. There are Meissner's corpuscles , Pacinian Corpuscles ,
thermoreceptors and pain receptors. They give you the sensation of
feeling, the Meissners corpuscles sense light pressure while Pacinian
is responsible for deep pressure. Thermo receptors can be divided in
to cold and heat receptor. Cold receptors activate at 95F and most
are stimulated by 77. If the temperature dips below 42F , the cold
receptors are turned off. This is why your fingers turn numb when
your hand is in cold water for a long time. Heat receptors are

stimulated when the temperature goes above 86, they go until 113,
where it turns off. Beyond this point , pain receptors take over. There
are more cold receptors than heat receptors in your body because
most environments are cooler than your inner body (98.6F)
5. Chemical Synthesis
a. When your skin bathes in the sun , you may not realize it but a
chemical reaction is going on. Your body creates vitamin D as you
bathe in the sun.

Skin Appearance
-Skin color primarily depends on three factors , genetics , environmental factors
and blood volume. 3 main pigments decide your skin color. These are Melanin ,
Carotene and Hemoglobin.
PIGMENTS
MELANIN
This pigment is mainly located in the epidermis, is made by the melanocytes
which contrary to common belief has the same number in all races. So Black
people have the same number of melanocytes as a Chinese. Freckles and Liver
spots are all caused by an accumulation of Melanin in the skin. The reason for
the skin differance is the number of Melanin produced and the type produced.
One of two , Eumelanin is brownish black while Pheomelanin is reddish yellow.
Fair skinned people have more Pheomelanin than dark colored people , and vice
versa with eumelanin.
CAROTENE
This pigment is yellowish orange and is a precursor for Vitamin A which is used
to make pigments needed for vision. This is found in stratum corneum and fatty
areas of dermis and hypodermis.
HEMOGLOBIN
The Oxygen Carrying pigment in the red blood cells
SKIN MARKINGS
FRICTION RIDGES - markings on fingerprints which are also found on other
primates. This allows us to move objects easily
FINGERPRINTS - friction ridge skin impressions

FLEXION LINES - on flexing areas of the digits , palms , wrists elbows , where
skin is tightly bound to the body.
FRECKLES - flat melanized patches that vary with your genetics and the
exposure to the sun
MOLES - an elevated patch of melanized skin on the hair which is usually
harmless and in some societies a sign of beauty
AGING
When people reach their mid 20s , effects of aging become more visible in the
skin. This is because stem cell activity declines which creates thin skin and also
makes skin repair difficult. White blood cells in the region decrease which
reduces the immune response. Vitamin D3 consumption also decreases along
with calcium absorption which leads to the decline of bone strength. Glandular
activities declines which can make a body overheat and dry up the skin. Blood
supply to the dermis is also reduced and will make you feel cold. Many hair
follicles will die or produce thin hair. The dermis becomes less elastic , and thus
forming wrinkles on the body.

SKIN RECEPTORS
FOR LIGHT TOUCH
1. Meissners corpuscles = are sensors in the skin that are surrounded in a
capsule of connective tissue that are very sensitive and react to light
touch. Located in Palms , lips , eyelids , external genitals and nipples. (
particularly sensitive parts of the body.
FOR HEAVY PRESSURE
1. Pacinian Corpuscles = are sensors that sense pressure and heavy
vibrations deep deep in the skin.
PAIN
1. Pain Receptors = register pain and are the most numerous in the skin
TEMPERATURE
Refer to P3 #4

Appendage Structures of the Skin

-
includes hair , sebaceous glands , and oil glands
HAIR
Hair shaft = part that is outside of skin
Hair root = part of hair that is in the skin penetrating into the dermis. It has 3
layers
1. Medulla - center layer that contains pigments and air pockets
2. Cortex - Middle layer that contains pigment in black hair but air pockets
for white hair
3. Cuticle - Outermost layer that is positioned like roof shingles and is
composed of hard keratinized cells
Base of the Hair Follicle - 2 major parts
1. Bulb - houses the hair papilla ( nipple like structure that is the source of
hair nourishment as blood vessels and nutrients flow through this section)
2. Matrix - part that is responsible for new hair growth and the continuation
of hair growth
Arrector Pili = a smooth muscle that stretches from the dermis to the side of a
hair follicle. When the muscle is contracted it causes the hair on your body to
stand up causing a phenomena we call Goose Bumps
Hair root plexus - group of sensitive nerve endings that serve as a receptor for
touch sensation. They are located at the bottom of the hair follicle on the hair
bulb
Facts about Hair
- You have about 5,000,000 hairs . 100,000 are located in the scalp
- Hair shafts differ in size, shape and the colow. This causes the
differentiation of hair causing some to grow long and others to stay short.
- 3 main types of hair shafts. Oval shaped shafts produce wavy hair . flat
shafts produce curly hair , and round shafts produce straight hair.

SKIN GLANDS

Sudoriferous glands - sweat glands (2 types)

1. Eccrine
a. Secretes cooling sweat
b. Allows body to cool down
c. Secretes directly into the skin
2. Apocrine
a. Stimulated by emotional stress or excitement
b. Secretes into hair follicle
Sebaceous Glands = Oil Glands
a. Connected to hair follicle
b. Secrete sebum
Ceruminous glands - modified to fit the ear ( modified sweat gland)
a. Prevent entrance of foreign objects
NAILS
a. Tightly packed hardened keratinized cells
b. Nail body - portion of nail that is visible
i. Free edge - part that extends past the digit
ii. Nail root - part buried in the folds of the skin
c. Lunula - crescent shaped white part of the nails
d. Hyponychium - secures the nail to the skin
e. Eponychium - narrow band of epidermis
THE END OF A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE INTEGUMENTARY SYSTEM. FOR MORE
QUESTIONS PLEASE EMAIL KING FROYO AT frankcai.cai83@gmail.com