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Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine, 8e
Chapter 47. Skin as an Organ of Protection
Sections: Skin as an Organ of Protection: Introduction, Structure of the Stratum Corneum: The Physical Permeability Barrier, Epidermal Proliferation and Differentiation in Skin Barrier Function, Experimental Barrier Disruption and Gene Modification in Epidermal Differentiation, Functions of the Subcorneal Epidermal Layers, Pathological Skin Barriers: Skin Barrier Function in Dermatoses, Treatment Implications and Approaches: Restoring the Skin's Protective Function,  References.
Topics Discussed: skin.
Excerpt:"The skin's most important function is to form an effective barrier between the "inside" and the "outside" of the organism. Life on dry land requires the presence of a barrier to regulate water loss and prevent desiccation, commonly referred to as the "inside–outside" barrier. Additionally, skin provides an "outside–inside" barrier to protect against mechanical, chemical, and microbial assaults from the external environment (Fig. 47-1).1 To perform these functions the epidermis undergoes keratinization, a process in which epidermal cells progressively mature from basal cells with proliferative potential to the lifeless, flattened squames of the stratum corneum (SC) (Fig. 47-2). Both the SC and the deeper skin layers protect the skin from mechanical forces, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, cold and hot temperatures, and invasion of chemicals and microbes. To effectively perform this multiplicity of functions, the skin contains different types of barriers. The physical barrier consists mainly of the SC, but the nucleated epidermis, in particular the tight junctions, provides another important barrier component. The chemical/biochemical (antimicrobial) barrier consists of lipids, acids, lysozymes, and antimicrobial peptides (discussed in Chapter..."
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