Stratum corneum hydration: phase transformations and mobility in stratum corneum, extracted lipids and isolated corneocytes
The outermost layer of skin, stratum corneum (SC), functions as the major barrier to diffusion. SC has the architecture of dead keratin filled cells embedded in a lipid matrix. This work presents a detailed study of the hydration process in extracted SC lipids, isolated corneocytes and intact SC. Using isothermal sorption microcalorimetry and relaxation and wideline 1H NMR, we study these systems