What are the melanocytes and what do they do?
A cell in the skin and eyes that produces and contains the pigment called melanin. Anatomy of the skin, showing the epidermis, dermis, and subcutaneous tissue. Melanocytes are in the layer of basal cells at the deepest part of the epidermis.
What is the definition of melanocyte quizlet?
cells that contain melanin – give skin color.
What is the function of melanocytes quizlet?
Melanocytes produce and secrete melanin. Melanin synthesis occurs in melanosomes.
What is a melanocyte anatomy?
Melanocytes are melanin-producing neural crest-derived cells located in the bottom layer (the stratum basale) of the skin’s epidermis, the middle layer of the eye (the uvea), the inner ear, vaginal epithelium, meninges, bones, and heart. Melanin is a dark pigment primarily responsible for skin color.
How do melanocytes protect the skin?
UVA radiation causes lesions or DNA damage to melanocytes, which are the skin cells that produce the skin pigment known as melanin. Melanin is a protective pigment in skin, blocking UV radiation from damaging DNA and potentially causing skin cancer.
Where are melanocytes located quizlet?
Melanocytes are found primarily in the stratum basal of the epidermis.
Where are the melanocytes located quizlet?
What is the top layer of the skin called?
epidermis
The epidermis and the dermis are the top two layers of skin in your body. The epidermis is the top layer, and the dermis is the middle layer. The dermis exists between the epidermis and the hypodermis.
What is the function of the melanin in the skin?
Melanin provides pigmentation to your skin, eyes and hair. The substance also absorbs harmful UV (ultraviolet) rays and protects your cells from sun damage.
What is the function of melanin in the skin quizlet?
Melanin provides skin color and protects against the damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation.
How do melanocytes contribute to skin color?
Melanin protects the skin by shielding it from the sun. Melanocytes manufacture melanin and deposit it in the epidermal cells. Exposure to sunlight increases the melanin production in everyone, so that light-skinned people become tan and dark-skinned people become even darker.
How do melanocytes respond to ultraviolet radiation?
Epidermal melanocytes and keratinocytes respond to UVR by increasing their expression of αMSH and ACTH, which up-regulate the expression of MC1R, and consequently enhance the response of melanocytes to melanocortins. Constitutive skin pigmentation dramatically affects the incidence of skin cancer.