Fine Structure of the Fully Keratinized Hair Cuticle in Human Head Hair
January 1981
in “
Cells Tissues Organs
”
TLDR Human hair cuticle has five cell layers with specific junctions and granules.
The study examined the fine structure of the fully keratinized hair cuticle in human head hair, focusing on the composition and characteristics of the cuticle layers. It found that the cuticle is composed of five cell layers, with tight junctions (zonulae occludentes) between cuticular cells and gap junctions near the cortex. Trichohyalin granules, smaller and spherical compared to keratohyalin granules, were observed in the cuticular cells of fully cornified hair but not near the hair surface. The study suggested that keratin in the cuticular cell cytoplasm may originate from these trichohyalin granules.
