Objectives
• Describe and label the structure of the skin.
• Describe the functions of the skin, and mainly its role in
thermoregulation.
Starter
The skin is the body’s largest and fastest growing organ. There are
about six million skin cells in every square centimetre of the human
body. The human body constantly grows new skin cells and
sheds old ones. The human body sheds between 30,000 to
40,000 old skin cells every minute!
Can you
think of
any
function of
the skin?
The Layers of the Skin
There are three main layers of the skin:
• The epidermis is the top layer of the skin, the part of
the skin that is visible.
• The dermis is the second layer of skin. It's much
thicker and provides protection for your body.
• The hypodermis is the bottom layer of the skin is
made up of subcutaneous fat tissue and provides
insulation and cushioning.
epidermis
dermis
hypodermis
The Layers of the Skin - Epidermis
• The epidermis is made of flattened dead cells that are constantly
shedding and getting replaced by new cells pushed up from
underneath. It provides a barrier against light and heat energy and
protects from water loss, microbes and other chemicals.
• This layer contains keratin - a substance found in hair and nails
• The deepest layer of the epidermis creates new cells that are
continually pushed upwards by new skin cells to create the other
cell layers in the epidermis.
• The epidermis also contains melanin, the pigment that determines
the colour of the skin.
The Layers of the Skin - Dermis
The dermis is underneath the epidermis. This layer includes many
specialized structures such as sweat glands, nerve endings, blood vessels
and hair follicles. The blood vessels provide essential nutrients to the
epidermis.
Hair erector
muscle
sweat gland
nerve
hair follicle
The Layers of the Skin –The hypodermis
(Subcutaneous Fat Tissue)
This hypodermis contains a layer of fat and connective
tissues. This layer plays a role by:
• Attaching the dermis to muscles and bones;
• Storing fat - also known as adipose tissue. This fat plays an
important role in cushioning muscles and bones from bumps and
falls. Adipose tissue also helps to maintain body temperature by
acting as insulation.
Layers of the Skin Diagram
epidermis Hair erector
muscle
sweat gland
dermis
nerve
subcutaneous
fat tissue hair follicle
Plenary/attainment: booklet page 33 number 3
1. Hair (shaft)
2. Sweat pore
3. Epidermis
4. Dermis
5. Fat cell
6. Sweat gland
7. Blood vessel
8. Hair
9. Hair erector
muscle
10. Sebaceous
gland
Starter: Describe this function of the skin.
Functions of the Skin - Protection
The skin protects the body’s essential organs,
muscles, tissues and skeletal system from
the outside world.
This barrier protects the internal organs from
bacteria, extreme temperatures and harmful
chemicals.
As well as keeping dangerous things out, the skin
also keeps helpful things in, such as water and blood .
Functions of the Skin - Touch
Skin, in cooperation with the nervous system,
is the main organ for the sense of touch in
humans.
In our skin are nerve endings called receptor cells such
as thermoreceptors and mechanoreceptors.
These receptor cells send information to the
brain about things we touch. They
communicate with the brain to tell it if a
sensation is hot, cold, rough, smooth or painful.
There are different types of receptor cells to
detect different types of stimuli.
Functions of the Skin – Temperature Regulation
The skin plays a large role in regulating (controlling)
the temperature of the body.
This is Homeostasis (maintaining constant internal
body conditions).
By controlling the flow of blood and
fluids, such as sweat, the skin
regulates
our body's temperature.
Functions of the Skin – Vasodilation
• When we get too hot, pores are opened to allow sweat to leave
the body to help cool us down.
• The shunt vessel
constricts.
• Blood vessels dilate to
allow more blood closer
to the surface of the skin
where it is cooler. This is
why we often appear
redder and more flushed
when we are hot.
• More hear is lost to the
surrounding.
Functions of the Skin – Vasodilation
In addition to vasodilation, when it’s hot:
• When we get too hot, hairs on the skin lie flat to trap less warm air. Hair
erector muscles in the skin relax to lay the hairs down flat to increase heat
loss.
Functions of the Skin – Vasoconstriction
When we get cold, the shunt vessel dilates, so the blood vessels
(arterioles) constrict to keep blood away from the surface of the
skin to prevent heat loss and help us warm up.
This is why we appear
to ‘turn blue’ when we
are extremely cold.
Functions of the Skin – Vasoconstriction
In addition to vasoconstriction, when it’s cold:
• Shivering is the involuntary contraction and relaxation of hair erecter
muscles. This occurs very quickly. It releases energy as heat to warm us up.
• Hairs on the skin trap more
warm air if they are standing
up. Hair erecter muscles in
the skin contract to pull the
hairs upright, so a layer of
warm air is trapped among
the hairs..
Vasodilation vs Vasoconstriction
Plenary: Booklet page: 32 number 2
