
The arthropod exoskeleton is the most complex of invertebrate integuments. Describe its structure, and explain the difference in the way cuticle is hardened in crustaceans and in insects.

To describe: The structure of arthropod exoskeleton.
Introduction: Integument is considered as an outer covering of the body and it is the protective layer such as the skin and all the structures associated with or originated from the skin, for example, scales, hair, horns, feathers, and setae. The most complex invertebrate integuments possessed by the arthropods.
Explanation of Solution
Structure of the arthropod exoskeleton:
The arthropod exoskeleton comprised of a single-layered epidermis, also known as hypodermis, which secretes two different zones of cuticles. This includes procuticle and epicuticle. The procuticle is a thicker inner zone and it is made up of protein and chitin deposited in layers. Epicuticle is the thin, outer zone of the cuticle and it is lying on the outer surface above the procuticle. The epicuticle is considered as a nonchitinous complex of proteins as well as lipids that confer a protective moisture-proofing barrier to the integument.

To explain: The difference in the way cuticle is hardened in crustaceans and in insects.
Explanation of Solution
The difference in the way cuticle is hardened in crustaceans and in insects:
The cuticle of an arthropod may be a tough however flexible and soft layer, as it is in numerous microcrustaceans and insect larvae or it may be hardened in one of two ways. The cuticle in decapod crustaceans, such as lobsters, and crabs, is stiffened by calcification process.
In insects, the hardening takes place once the molecules of proteins join together with stabilizing cross-linkages within and between the adjacent lamellae of the procuticle. Sclerotization is the result of this process. Sclerotization is a process in which the formation of a highly resistant as well as insoluble protein known as sclerotin occurs.
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