Nail

Nails are protective coverings on the ends of fingers and toes.

Each nail is produced by layers of specialized epithelial cells that are continuous with the epithelium of the skin.

Nail

The whitish, half-moonshaped region (lunula) at the base of a nail is its most active growing portion.

The cells formed in this region undergo keratinization and become part of the nail.

The keratin they contain, however, is harder than that formed in the epidermis and hair follicles.

The root of the nail is embedded in the skin, is covered by the cuticle and forms the hemispherical pale area called the lunula.

The nail plate of the nail is the exposed part that has grown out from the germinative zone of the epidermis called the nail bed.

Nail root Structure

Finger nails grow more quickly than toe nails and growth is quicker when the environmental temperature is high.