Vocabulary & Check Your Knowledge
Integumentary System Vocabulary
Adipocytes
Fat cells.
Adipose tissue
Fat tissue.
Autonomic nerve fibers
Unconsciously regulates communication to and from the brain.
Avascular
Without blood vessels.
Benign
Noncancerous, harmless.
Cancer
A process where abnormal cells in the body divide uncontrollably.
Cyanosis
Abnormal condition of blue (bluish colour, lips and nail beds). Typically caused by low oxygenation.
Debridement
Excision of damaged tissue or foreign object.
Dehydration
Loss of fluids/water is greater than what is taken in.
Dermatologic
Pertaining to dermatology.
Dermatopathology
Study of diseases of the skin.
Dermis
The layer of skin that is made of dense, irregular connective tissue that houses blood vessels, hair follicles, sweat glands, and other structures.
Epidermis
Outer layer of skin, made of closely packed epithelial cells.
Excises
Remove by cutting out.
Exocytosis
Active transport of molecules out of the cell.
Fascia
Fibrous tissue.
Frostbite
Conservation of core body heat results in the skin actually freezing.
Hypodermis
Literally means below the dermis. The layer of skin below the dermis that is composed mainly of loose connective and fatty tissues.
Infection
Invasion by disease-causing organisms.
Intravenous
Pertaining to within the vein.
Jaundiced
Yellow-coloured.
Keloid
Formation of a raised or hypertrophic scar.
Keratinocytes
Cells that manufacture and store the protein keratin.
Meissner corpuscle
Tactile corpuscle that responds to light and touch, touch receptor.
Meissner corpuscles
Tactile corpuscle that responds to light and touch, touch receptors.
Melanocytes
Specialized cells that produce melanin which is a dark pigment responsible for the colouration of skin and hair.
Metastasize
Production of cells that can mobilize and establish tumors in other organs of the body.
Necrosis
Tissue death.
Osteomalacia
Softening of the bones.
Pacinian corpuscle
Lamellated corpuscle that responds to vibration.
Pathogens
Disease-causing agents.
Phagocytes
Cells that engulf and absorb bacteria and cell particles.
Reticulated
Net like.
Rickets
A painful condition in children where bones are misshapen due to a lack of calcium, causing bow leggedness.
Scar
Collagen-rich skin formed after the process of wound healing that differs from normal skin.
Stratum Basale
Deepest layer of the epidermal.
Sympathetic nerve fibers
Flight or fight response determines communication to and from the brain.
Sympathetic Nervous System
Responsible for fight or flight responses.
Vascularized
Has numerous blood vessels.
Test Yourself
Integumentary System Glossary Reinforcement Activity (Text version)
- Cells that manufacture and store the protein keratin are called ______[Blank 1].
- Scar
- Vascularized
- Keratinocytes
- The outer layer of skin, made of closely packed epithelial cells are called____[Blank 2].
- Fascia
- Adipocytes
- Epidermis
- Specialized cells that produce melanin which is a dark pigment responsible for the colouration of skin and hair are called____[Blank 3].
- Necrosis
- Melanocytes
- Keloid
- Deepest layer of the epidermal is the _____[Blank 4].
- Dermis
- Fascia
- Stratum Basale
- Production of cells that can mobilize and establish tumors in other organs of the body are called _____[Blank 5].
- Pathogens
- Debridement
- Metastasize
Check your answers: [1]
Activity source: Integumentary System Glossary Reinforcement Activity by Gisele Tuzon and Kimberlee Carter, licensed under CC BY 4.0./Text version added.
Attribution
Except where otherwise noted, this chapter is adapted from “Integumentary System” in Building a Medical Terminology Foundation by Kimberlee Carter and Marie Rutherford licensed under CC BY 4.0. / A derivative of Betts et al., which can be accessed for free from Anatomy and Physiology (OpenStax). Adaptations: dividing Integumentary System chapter content into sub-chapters.
- 1. Keratinocytes, 2. Epidermis, 3. Melanocytes, 4. Stratum Basale, 5. Metastasize ↵