Final answer:
The nail comprises a visible 'nail plate' and an underlying 'nail bed', with growth originating from the nail root and matrix. The cuticle and nail fold are structures that protect and support the nail.
Step-by-step explanation:
- A nail consists of two main parts: a visible nail plate that overlies a nail bed.
- The nail plate, also known as the nail body, is the hard and visible part of the nail, composed of densely packed dead keratinocytes, and it protects the tips of our fingers and toes from mechanical stress.
- The nail bed is a specialized epithelial structure underneath the nail plate, rich in blood vessels, which gives it a pink appearance.
- The nail grows continuously from the nail root situated at the proximal end, which houses the nail matrix, a layer of proliferating cells from the stratum basale.
- Other associated structures include the eponychium, commonly known as the cuticle, which is a fold of epithelium that extends over the nail bed at the proximal end, and the nail fold, which helps to anchor the nail to the sides.