15 Oct The Anatomy of Hair
Hair is a complicated structure. It is comprised of the root (or follicle) and the shaft (the visible part of hair). The root is enclosed in the hair follicle and ends down to the bulb.
Dermal papilla cell is situated at the base of the hair follicle which is a biological structure that is very important to the follicle.
They bear capillary vessels that send nutritive elements from blood to cells.
In dermal papilla also lie the androgens receptors and fibroblasts, which have an important role in the hair growth cycle.
The shaft is the visible dead part of the hair and consists of 3 layers.
• Cuticle, the outermost layer of the hair. It is made of keratin.
• The cortex contains pigment (melanin) that defines hair color. The cortex defines hair texture which includes keratin and is responsible for the shaft growth
• The medulla is an innermost layer of the hair that is made of cells that form a shaft through the middle of the hair.