@theskinbiologylab: ๐งฌ BIOLOGY STORIES #032 | ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ง๐๐ข๐ฅ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ ๐ซ๐จ๐ฐ? ๐ ๐ผ๐งฌ That hard, shiny nail you can see is actually made from keratinised cells but the process starts much deeper at the base of the nail ๐ฌ Hidden beneath the skin is the nail matrix which is the living tissue responsible for producing most of the nail plate. Cells here are continuously produced and begin a process of differentiation and keratinisation. As they mature, they become densely packed with keratin and lose their nuclei, forming the hard nail plate we see ๐งฌ New cells being produced at the matrix gradually push the older nail material forward, which is why the nail appears to grow from the base towards the fingertip ๐๐ผ And that pale half-moon you can sometimes see? Thatโs the lunula, the visible part of the nail matrix ๐ So your nail isnโt simply a dead piece of tissue sitting thereโฆ.. Itโs the end product of a continuous biological production process happening underneath your skin ๐คฏ๐ฌ ๐งฌ Biology is happening even in something as ordinary as your fingernail. #theskinbiologylab #biology #nailgrowth #nailbiology
