Identifying el Integumentary System
By: Marissa Kreidler and Martha Van Slyke
Informational Facts
The integumentary system includes the skin, hair, and nails.
The skin acts as a barrier that protects the body from infection.
Hair, such as eyelashes and ear hairs, keep many particles in the air from entering your body.
Major Organs of the Integumentary System
-skin
-hair
-nails
-glands
-nerves
The only way that pathogens can get in is if the skin is cut and the body responds quickly to keep out as many pathogens as possible.
Levels of Organization for the Integumentary System
- Molecular level – keratin, melanin and vitamin D
- Microscopic level – stem cells and skin cells
- Tissue level – epithelial and connective tissue
- Organ level – skin, consisting of the epidermis, dermis, and hypodermis, as well as hair, nails and glands
Molecular Level
Keratin and Melanin- Keratin is a group of fibrous proteins that give hair, nails, and skin their tough, water-resistant properties. Keratins are filaments formed from the polymerization of intermediate filament proteins.
Microscopic Level
The epidermis (or epithelial layer) is stratified squamous epithelia, composed of four to five layers (depending on body region) of epithelial cells. The top layers of the epidermis are made up of keratinocytes, which are cells containing the protein keratin.The keratinocytes on the most superficial layer of the epidermis are dead, and periodically slough away, being replaced by cells from the deeper layers. As you know, microscopic means very small. This level of the integumentary system is small and has skin cells.
Tissue Level
The skin contains many tissue types. The epidermis is classified as epithelial tissue composed of stratified squamous epithelia. This is only one type of tissue. There are many more.
We're covering the Integumentary System
Organ Level
The skin, the integumentary system’s organ, is composed of the epidermis (epithelial tissue) and dermis (connective tissues), with an underlying hypodermis that is technically not part of the skin organ. The organ is created by two main parts. The epedermis and the dermis. The epidermis is the upper or outer layer of the skin. However, the dermis is the inner layer of the skin. So, the organ level is basically just the skin.
Homeostasis and the Integumentary System
When you are hot, you start sweating. Sweat beads are waste from your skin, the integumentary system. So when you are too warm, your integumentary system and homeostasis work together to balance out your body temperatures and make them more even. Skin cancer is one form of a disease or illness that can occur if homeostasis is not maintained in the integumentary system.
Interaction
The skin is one of the first defense mechanisms in your immune system. The immune system is the main organs in your body. The integumentary system protects the organs in the immune system and in return the immune system functions the body. The digestive system also works with the integumentary system. Vitamin D activated by the skin stimulates dietary calcium absorption. The nervous system, including the brain spinal cord must be shared with the integumentary system, because if they are not covered, the body can't work properly.