In biology, an integument is the tissue surrounding an organism's body or an organ within, such as
skin, a
husk
Husk (or hull) in botany is the outer shell or coating of a seed. In the United States, the term husk often refers to the leafy outer covering of an ear of maize (corn) as it grows on the plant. Literally, a husk or hull includes the protective ...
,
shell, germ or
rind
Rind may refer to:
Food
*Peel (fruit), or outer covering of any vegetable
*Pork rind
*The outer layer of cheese
*Candied rind; see Succade
*Grated rind; see Zest (ingredient)
Other uses
*Rind (Baloch tribe), a tribe in Pakistan
*Rind (giantess), ...
.
Etymology
The term is derived from ''integumentum'', which is
Latin for "a covering". In a transferred, or figurative sense, it could mean a
cloak or a
disguise.
In English, "integument" is a fairly modern word, its origin having been traced back to the early seventeenth century; and refers to a material or layer with which anything is enclosed, clothed, or covered in the sense of "clad" or "coated", as with a skin or husk.
Botanical usage
In
botany, the term "integument" may be used as it is in zoology, referring to the covering of an organ. When the context indicates nothing to the contrary, the word commonly refers to an envelope covering the nucellus of the
ovule. The integument may consist of one layer (unitegmic) or two layers (bitegmic), each of which consisting of two or more layers of cells. The integument is perforated by a pore, the micropyle, through which the pollen tube can enter. It may develop into the testa, or
seed coat.
Zoological usage
The integument of an organ in
zoology typically would comprise membranes of connective tissue such as those around a kidney or liver. In referring to the integument of an animal, the usual sense is its skin and its derivatives: the
integumentary system
The integumentary system is the set of organs forming the outermost layer of an animal's body. It comprises the skin and its appendages, which act as a physical barrier between the external environment and the internal environment that it serves ...
, where "integumentary" is a synonym of "
cutaneous".
In
arthropods
Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...
, the integument, or external "skin", consists of a single layer of
epithelial ectoderm
The ectoderm is one of the three primary germ layers formed in early embryonic development. It is the outermost layer, and is superficial to the mesoderm (the middle layer) and endoderm (the innermost layer). It emerges and originates from t ...
from which arises the
cuticle
A cuticle (), or cuticula, is any of a variety of tough but flexible, non-mineral outer coverings of an organism, or parts of an organism, that provide protection. Various types of "cuticle" are non- homologous, differing in their origin, structu ...
,
an outer covering of
chitin
Chitin ( C8 H13 O5 N)n ( ) is a long-chain polymer of ''N''-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is probably the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose); an estimated 1 billion tons of chit ...
, the rigidity of which varies as per its chemical composition.
Derivative terms and sundry usages
Derivative terms include various adjectival forms such as integumentary (e.g. system), integumental (e.g. integumental glands, "peltate glands, the integument being raised like a bladder due to abundant secretion"
[Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent; Published by Gerald Duckworth & Co. London, 4th ed 1928]) and integumented (as opposed to bare).
Other illustrative examples of usage occur in the following articles:
*
Connective tissue in skeletal muscle
*
Dorsal artery of the penis (example of integument enclosing an internal organ)
*
Flensing
*
Flesh (generic use of plural "integuments")
*
Herzog & de Meuron (figurative usage)
*
Integumentary system
The integumentary system is the set of organs forming the outermost layer of an animal's body. It comprises the skin and its appendages, which act as a physical barrier between the external environment and the internal environment that it serves ...
(senses related to vertebrate skin and medical aspects)
*
Integumental muscles
*
Mosasaur
*
Seed
References
{{Authority control
Animal anatomy
Skin
Organs (anatomy)
Plant anatomy