Anatomy and Chemical Makeup of a Single Hair (Animation)

The hair's outer cuticle surrounds hair cells filled with tough keratin macrofibrils. Each macrofibril consists of smaller microfibrils. A microfibril is made up of three keratin polypeptide chains. The chains are linked together by disulfide bonds. A hair consists of keratin chains held together by disulfide bridges. For a permanent wave, hair is exposed to chemicals that break the disulfide bonds. When hair is wrapped around curlers, the polypeptide chains are held in new positions. The hair is next treated with a chemical that causes the formation of new sulfide bridges. These bridges lock the hair in a curled position.

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