The cat's skin is loose, elastic, and highly resistant. Depending on the region, it varies from 0.4 to 2 mm in thickness. A cat weighing 2 kg has a body surface of 0.15 m2, and a cat weighing 6 kg has a surface of 0.3m2.
The skin's main role is to act as a barrier between the external and internal environment by limiting permeability thanks to hair and the cornified layer of the epidermis. This barrier works in both directions. It is essential in limiting the loss of substances, particularly water, and in preventing the excessive penetration of foreign elements.
The outermost layer of the skin consists of the epidermis and epidermal appendages (hair follicles, sebaceous and sweat glands, claws, paw pads).
The epidermis is a supple, watertight, resistant external envelope. Its cornified layer is an adaptation to life on land. The epidermis is not vascularized. It consists of several layers of cells and is covered by a surface film of desquamated cells, proteins, and especially lipids (waxes and sterols). It has one layer of cells packed very closely together. All of this thus forms an impermeable barrier.
Special cells called melanocytes produce melanins, or pigments that protect the skin from sunlight, and store it in vesicles, the melanosomes, which are then transmitted to the neighboring keratinocytes.
All these cells truly work as a team to perform the functions of the skin and protect it from damage.
Given the skin's exposure to the external environment, it is not surprising that it also contains cells with a defensive role, a bit like the white blood cells. It also contains many cells that modulate the sensory function of the dermis.
The dermis, the main part of the skin, ensures passive protection against external trauma. It is a connective component that supports the epidermis and provides it with nutrients and hormones, thanks to its vascularization. With its many receptors, the dermis is also the center of the skin's sensory function.
The hypodermis is a looser connective tissue characterized by richly vascularized adipose cells. Fat serves as an insulator and a form of energy storage.
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