stratum granulosum, one of the layers of the epidermis, situated just below the stratum corneum except in the thick skin of the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet, where it lies just under the stratum lucidum. The stratum granulosum contains visible granules in the cytoplasm of its cells, which die, become keratinized, move to the surface, and flake away. Compare stratum basale, stratum corneum, stratum lucidum, stratum spinosum. See also skin.
