StripWise A&P 1 Lab Guide: Integumentary & Musculoskeletal
Skin, Bones & Muscles
The lab practical is a timed walk past stations with a pin stuck in something and 60 seconds to name it. This guide is built for that: what you'll be asked to point to, ID tables, labeled figures, sticky mnemonics and practice questions you tap to check. It pairs with the lecture guide.
Open the companion A&P lecture guide (Cells, Bones & Muscles) ↗How to use it: cover the label column of each ID table and quiz yourself, then do the questions before you peek. Your lab's models and lists win if they differ from this guide.
Unit 1 · Integumentary System: The Body's Gown and Gloves
↑ Back to indexQuick Take: Skin = epidermis + dermis, sitting on the hypodermis. Functions: protection, temperature regulation (sweat, blood flow), sensation, vitamin D synthesis, and excretion. On the practical you'll mostly be pointing at layers, strata, glands, follicles and receptors on a model or slide.
Skin at a glance: the 3 layers
↑ Back to index📍 What you'll be asked to point to:
- Epidermis, dermis (papillary vs reticular layer) and hypodermis on the skin model
- Dermal papillae, hair follicle, arrector pili, sebaceous gland, sweat gland and its duct/pore
- Blood vessels in the dermis and adipose in the hypodermis
| Layer | Tissue | What's there | ID clue on the model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Epidermis | Keratinized stratified squamous epithelium | Keratinocytes, melanocytes, dendritic (Langerhans) cells, tactile (Merkel) cells | Thin top layer; avascular (no vessels) |
| Dermis: papillary layer | Areolar (loose) connective tissue | Dermal papillae, capillary loops, tactile (Meissner) corpuscles | Wavy bumps right under the epidermis |
| Dermis: reticular layer | Dense irregular connective tissue | Collagen and elastic fibers, glands, follicles, larger vessels, lamellated (Pacinian) corpuscles | Thick middle zone with most structures |
| Hypodermis (subcutaneous layer) | Areolar and adipose tissue | Fat storage, anchors skin to muscle; not technically part of the skin | Yellow fat blobs at the bottom |
🧠 Memory hook: Epi = on top, Derm = skin, Hypo = under. The dermis is "Pretty Rough": Papillary on top, Reticular below.
Charge nurse tip: No blood vessels in the epidermis. If a pin is on a capillary, you're in the dermis.
↑ Back to index
Epidermis strata (the layer cake)
↑ Back to index📍 What you'll be asked to point to:
- Each stratum from deep to superficial on a thick-skin slide or model
- Stratum basale vs stratum corneum
- Thick skin (palms, soles: 5 layers) vs thin skin (4 layers, no lucidum)
| Stratum (deep → superficial) | What's going on | Lab clue |
|---|---|---|
| Basale (germinativum) | Single row of dividing stem cells; melanocytes and Merkel cells live here | Deepest; one cell row on the basement membrane |
| Spinosum | Several layers of keratinocytes held by desmosomes; dendritic cells | "Spiny" look on slides |
| Granulosum | Cells flatten, fill with keratohyalin and lamellar granules, start dying | Dark granules |
| Lucidum | Clear layer of dead cells; thick skin only | Thin glassy band |
| Corneum | 15 to 30 layers of dead, keratin-filled cells that shed | Top, flaky, thickest in thick skin |
🧠 Memory hook: Deep to superficial: "Before Signing, Get Legal Counsel" → Basale, Spinosum, Granulosum, Lucidum, Corneum. Superficial to deep: "Come, Let's Get Sun Burned."
⚠️ Lab practical traps
↑ Back to index
- Lucidum is only in thick skin. Thin skin has 4 layers.
- Basale is the only stratum where cells divide.
- Melanocytes are in the stratum basale, not the corneum.
Accessory structures: hair, nails & glands
↑ Back to index📍 What you'll be asked to point to:
- Hair shaft, root, hair bulb, papilla, follicle, arrector pili muscle
- Sebaceous gland vs sudoriferous (sweat) gland
- Nail body, free edge, lunula, cuticle (eponychium), nail matrix
| Structure | Location/feature | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Hair follicle | Epidermal tube extending into the dermis | Produces hair; bulb at base contains dividing matrix cells |
| Arrector pili | Smooth muscle attached to follicle | Contracts → "goosebumps", hair stands up |
| Sebaceous gland | Opens into the hair follicle; holocrine | Secretes sebum (oil): softens, waterproofs, antibacterial |
| Eccrine (merocrine) sweat gland | Most of body, esp. palms, soles, forehead; duct opens at a pore | Watery sweat for thermoregulation |
| Apocrine sweat gland | Axillae, groin; empties into hair follicles; active after puberty | Thicker secretion; body odor when bacteria break it down |
| Ceruminous / mammary | Modified apocrine glands (ear canal / breasts) | Earwax / milk |
| Nail | Keratinized plate over nail bed; grows from nail matrix | Protects fingertip; lunula = pale half-moon over matrix |
🧠 Memory hook: Sebaceous = Sebum = Slick (oil). Sudoriferous = Sweat. Arrector pili = "arrest the hair straight up."
⚠️ Lab practical traps
↑ Back to index
- The arrector pili is smooth muscle, not skeletal: you can't make goosebumps on command.
- Sebaceous glands usually empty into a hair follicle; eccrine sweat glands open onto the skin surface through a pore.
Sensory receptors in the skin
↑ Back to index| Receptor | Where | Detects |
|---|---|---|
| Tactile (Merkel) cells/discs | Stratum basale | Light touch, fine detail |
| Tactile (Meissner) corpuscles | Dermal papillae (papillary dermis) | Light touch, low-frequency vibration |
| Lamellated (Pacinian) corpuscles | Deep reticular dermis / hypodermis; onion-like layers | Deep pressure, high-frequency vibration |
| Free nerve endings | Throughout epidermis and dermis | Pain, temperature, itch |
| Hair follicle receptors (root hair plexus) | Wrapped around follicles | Hair movement |
🧠 Memory hook: Pacinian = Pressure and it looks like an onion cut in half. Meissner = Mild touch, up top in the papillae.
↑ Back to index
Burns & the rule of nines (study level)
↑ Back to index
| Classification | Layers involved | Classic signs |
|---|---|---|
| Superficial (first degree) | Epidermis only | Red, painful, no blisters (e.g., mild sunburn) |
| Partial thickness (second degree) | Epidermis + part of dermis | Blisters, red, very painful |
| Full thickness (third degree) | Epidermis + entire dermis, may reach hypodermis | White, brown or leathery; often painless because nerve endings are destroyed |
| Fourth degree (some texts) | Extends into muscle or bone | Deep tissue damage |
| Adult region | % body surface area |
|---|---|
| Head and neck | 9% |
| Each upper limb | 9% each (18% total) |
| Anterior trunk | 18% |
| Posterior trunk | 18% |
| Each lower limb | 18% each (36% total) |
| Perineum/genitals | 1% |
Charge nurse tip: The numbers add to 100%: 9 + 18 + 18 + 18 + 36 + 1. Kids have proportionally bigger heads, so their charts differ; this table is the adult version used in A&P lab.
⚠️ Lab practical traps
↑ Back to index
- Full-thickness burns may hurt less than partial-thickness ones because the nerve endings are destroyed.
- The rule of nines estimates surface area, not depth.
Lab skin models: walk-through
↑ Back to index📍 What you'll be asked to point to:
- On the 3D skin block: epidermis, papillary and reticular dermis, hypodermis
- Hair shaft, follicle, bulb, arrector pili, sebaceous gland
- Eccrine gland coil and duct to pore; apocrine gland
- Meissner corpuscle (in papillae), Pacinian corpuscle (deep, onion), free nerve ending
- Arteriole/venule (red/blue), adipose
| Color convention on most models | Usually means |
|---|---|
| Red | Artery/arteriole |
| Blue | Vein/venule |
| Yellow | Nerve or adipose (check the shape: cords vs blobs) |
| Pale tan/pink layers | Epidermis strata |
Charge nurse tip: Trace any duct with your eyes: if it ends at the surface pore it's an eccrine sweat gland; if it dumps into a follicle it's sebaceous or apocrine. Colors vary by manufacturer, so learn shapes, not just colors.
↑ Back to index
Integumentary practice questions (5 free)
↑ Back to index🔒 The rest of the 39 practice questions is in the full guide. This free preview includes Unit 1 and 5 practice questions.
Get the full guide on Gumroad · or save with the A&P 1 Bundle (Lecture + Lab guides)
↑ Back to index
↑ Back to index
Get the full guide on Gumroad · or save with the A&P 1 Bundle (Lecture + Lab guides)
Unit 2 · Musculoskeletal System: Bones, Joints & the Muscles That Pull Them 🔒
↑ Back to index🔒 Unit 2 (Musculoskeletal) is in the full guide. This free preview includes Unit 1 and 5 practice questions.
Get the full guide on Gumroad · or save with the A&P 1 Bundle (Lecture + Lab guides)
↑ Back to index
Get the full guide on Gumroad · or save with the A&P 1 Bundle (Lecture + Lab guides)
Sources & image credits
↑ Back to indexFacts checked against these references (accessed October 2026). Your lab manual and instructor's list always win if they differ.
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 5 "The Integumentary System": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/5-introduction
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 6 "Bone Tissue and the Skeletal System": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/6-introduction
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 7 "Axial Skeleton": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/7-introduction
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 8 "The Appendicular Skeleton": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/8-introduction
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 9 "Joints": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/9-introduction
- OpenStax, Anatomy and Physiology 2e, Ch. 10 "Muscle Tissue" and Ch. 11 "The Muscular System": openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/11-introduction
- NCBI StatPearls, "Burn Classification" (study-level overview): ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK539773
Every image is credited under its figure. All images are openly licensed for commercial reuse (CC BY 3.0, CC BY 4.0, CC BY-SA 3.0 or public domain); none are NC-licensed. Images under CC BY-SA must stay under CC BY-SA if modified. The full list is in IMAGE_CREDITS.md in the source folder.
↑ Back to index