Epidermis

The epidermis is the thin, outer layer of the skin that is visible to the eye and works to provide protection to the body. It does not contain any blood vessels and is, therefore, dependent on the dermis, the layer of the skin underneath it, to provide access to nutrients and dispose of waste.

What is the Epidermis?

Polycomb complexes found to be essential for proper skin development

Mount Sinai researchers have discovered that Polycomb complexes, groups of proteins that maintain gene expression patterns, are essential for proper skin development, according to a paper published in Genes & Development on February 18.

18 Feb 2021

Algorithm for skin cancer diagnosis performs on par with dermatologists

A study has now been presented that boosts the evidence for using AI solutions in skin cancer diagnostics.

13 Feb 2021

Research finds new evidence about the mechanisms controlling skin repair and regeneration

As the air continues to dry and temperatures drop, the yearly battle against dry hands and skin has officially begun. New research from Northwestern University has found new evidence deep within the skin about the mechanisms controlling skin repair and renewal.

19 Jan 2021

Researchers show how optoacoustics can be used for monitoring skin water content

Researchers from Skoltech and the University of Texas Medical Branch (US) have shown how optoacoustics can be used for monitoring skin water content, a technique which is promising for medical applications such as tissue trauma management and in cosmetology.

16 Jan 2021

Scientists identify key enzyme as driver of autoimmune blistering diseases

The Granzyme B (GzmB) enzyme, which accumulates in certain tissues as we age, has been identified as a driver of itchy and sometimes life-threatening autoimmune conditions known as pemphigoid diseases (PDs), which cause blistering and skin erosion below the skin's surface.

13 Jan 2021

Protein encourages similar developing cells to clump together

Tohoku University scientists have, for the first time, provided experimental evidence that cell stickiness helps them stay sorted within correct compartments during development.

24 Dec 2020

Inherited DNA defects cause squamous cell carcinoma in kids with Fanconi anemia

Physicians and scientists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center used new stem cell technology to regenerate and study living patient-specific skin in the lab.

24 Nov 2020

Researchers identify a new way to prevent skin reactions in cancer patients

Using the body's immune system to fight cancer has great potential, but can also bring serious side effects, including itchy and painful skin reactions.

27 Oct 2020

Researchers report the discovery of innate immune signaling pathway in fibroblasts

Vanderbilt University researchers have reported the counterintuitive discovery that certain chemotherapeutic agents used to treat tumors can have the opposite effect of tissue overgrowth in normal, intact mammary glands, epidermis and hair follicles.

16 Oct 2020

SARS-CoV-2 survives on human skin for 9 hours

Japanese researchers have now studied the survival possibilities of the flu virus and the SARS-CoV-2 on human skin. Their study titled, "Survival of SARS-CoV-2 and influenza virus on the human skin: Importance of hand hygiene in COVID-19," was published in the latest issue of the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

8 Oct 2020

Researchers identify genetic markers linked to higher risk of capecitabine-induced hand-foot syndrome

Capecitabine is a chemotherapy drug used for breast and colorectal Cancer cancer. It can extend survival rate by nearly 10%.

21 Sep 2020

Applying "temporal pressure" to the skin can help deliver more drugs

Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) have showed that applying "temporal pressure" to the skin of mice can create a new way to deliver drugs.

4 Aug 2020

Study reveals mechanisms of mechanical stretch induced skin expansion

The capacity of the skin to expand by mechanical stretching has been used for decades in plastic and reconstructive surgery to generate an excess of skin that can be used to repair birth defects, damaged tissues, and breast reconstruction after mastectomy.

29 Jul 2020

Researchers discover key signaling pathway in the pathogenesis of Paget's disease

Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, in collaboration with their colleagues from Beijing, China, have gained new insights into the development of poorly understood malignant skin cancers collectively known as Paget's disease.

26 Jun 2020

Researchers discover mechanical cause for cell extrusion

The outer or inner boundaries of organs in the human body are lined with so-called epithelial sheets. These are layers of epithelial cells that can individually change their 3D shape -- which is what happens during biological processes like organ development (morphogenesis), physiological equilibrium (homeostatis) or cancer formation (carcinogenesis).

19 Jun 2020

Creating hair-bearing human skin becomes a reality

For more than 40 years, scientists and commercial companies have been recreating human skin in laboratories around the world. Yet all of these products lack important aspects of normal skin--hair, nerves, and fat.

5 Jun 2020

Hairy human skin grown from pluripotent stem cells

Building on years of groundbreaking discoveries in stem cell research, scientists from Indiana University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School have determined how to grow hairy skin using human stem cells--developing one of the most complex skin models in the world.

4 Jun 2020

Microfluidic Systems for Sweat Analysis and Neonatal Care

This interview provides insight into microfluidic systems and devices and the role they are playing in sweat analysis and neonatal care.

From Pittcon 24 Apr 2020

Study reveals major changes that occur in mammalian skin cells during wound healing

A team of University of California, Irvine researchers have published the first comprehensive overview of the major changes that occur in mammalian skin cells as they prepare to heal wounds.

19 Mar 2020

Research reveals how skin cells embark on a swift yet elaborate death

Skin is our body's most ardent defender against pathogens and other external threats. Its outermost layer is maintained through a remarkable transformation in which skin cells swiftly convert into squames--flat, dead cells that provide a tight seal between the living portion of the skin and the world outside.

13 Mar 2020