Joseph Merrick was originally thought to be suffering from elephantiasis. In 1971, Ashley Montagu suggested in his book The Elephant Man: A Study in Human Dignity that Merrick suffered from neurofibromatosis type I, a genetic disorder also known as von Recklinghausen's disease.
Layers of the Epidermis. The epidermis is divided into five layers. From outside to inside (dermis). Of note, Langerhans cells, which are specialized antigen-presenting cells are present in all layers of the epidermis but are mostly in the stratum spinosum.
There are basically three layers to the skin, the epidermis on top, the dermis just below that, and below that is the hypodermis or subcutis layer. The epidermis is primarily made of dead skin cells that form a protective layer. It is also where the melanocytes, the color cells of the skin, are found.