<P> The dermis or corium is a layer of skin between the epidermis ( with which it makes up the cutis ) and subcutaneous tissues , that primarily consists of dense irregular connective tissue and cushions the body from stress and strain . It is divided into two layers , the superficial area adjacent to the epidermis called the papillary region and a deep thicker area known as the reticular dermis . The dermis is tightly connected to the epidermis through a basement membrane . Structural components of the dermis are collagen , elastic fibers , and extrafibrillar matrix . It also contains mechanoreceptors that provide the sense of touch and thermoreceptors that provide the sense of heat . In addition , hair follicles , sweat glands , sebaceous glands , apocrine glands , lymphatic vessels and blood vessels are present in the dermis . Those blood vessels provide nourishment and waste removal for both dermal and epidermal cells . </P>
where does the papillary layer of the skin lie
adjacent to the epidermis