Question

As a student in an esthetic program, Hannah is tasked with building a three-dimensional model of the layers of the skin. Her model must include captions describing each skin layer and connect skin histology and physiology to esthetics. Hannah visits a craft store to purchase supplies from which she will construct her model.

Hannah chooses three different colors of clay to model _____, the cell types found in the stratum spinosum.

a) Melanocytes
b) Keratinocytes
c) Langerhans cells
d) Merkel cells

Answer 1

Hannah should use clay to model keratinocytes for the stratum spinosum layer of her skin model, as these are the predominant cell types found in that layer.

Step-by-step explanation:

Stratum Spinosum and Keratinocytes

Hannah is building a model of the skin's layers and needs to select the appropriate cell types for the stratum spinosum. The cell type found in the stratum spinosum that she should model with clay is keratinocytes. The stratum spinosum is situated above the stratum basale and is characterized by several layers of keratinocytes that have begun to synthesize keratin, making them tougher and flatter. Keratinocytes constitute the majority of epidermal cells and are vital for the protective function of the skin. As keratinocytes move up from the stratum basale, they change in shape and composition, eventually becoming the primary component of the stratum corneum, the outermost layer of the skin that protects against environmental stressors.