Lab Notebook

Our skin is in a constant state of renewal, sloughing off old layers, and regenerating new ones. These new layers are generated from stem cells in the basal layer of the epidermis, and as time progresses, these cells gradually change into different types of cells on their pathway to the surface of the skin, or the “epidermis.”

The stratum corneum, the outermost layer of the epidermis (the epidermis is the outermost layer of the skin), is made up of skin cells and oils that sit together like bricks and mortar. 

The outermost layer of skin (the epidermis) forms a protective barrier for our bodies, binding in moisture and keeping foreign bodies out (including bacteria, microorganisms and other pathogens). 

The outermost layer of skin (the epidermis) forms a protective barrier, binding in moisture and keeping foreign agents out (including bacteria and other microorganisms); this barrier is our skin’s defense against infection and exposure to radiation.