How do the cells of stratum corneum and stratum basale differ?

The stratum corneum cells are flattened (filled with keratin) and the stratum basale cells are cuboidal-shaped to columnar, this is achieved through the keratinization process.

Explanation:

The epidermis is the outermost layer of the skin, it protects us against toxins, bacteria and fluid loss. It's composed of 5 sub-layers of cells called keratinocytes. These cells produced in the innermost sub-layer (stratum basale), migrate to the outermost sub-layer (stratum corneum) maturing and undergoing a series of changes. This process, known as keratinization (or cornification), makes each of the sub-layers different.

The stratum basale consists of a single layer of cuboidal cells that are arranged above the dermo-epidermal junction. In the stratum basale are the stem cells (adult stem cells) of the keratinocytes, which rise to the keratinocytes of the interfollicular epidermis (lacks hair follicles). Trunk cells have a cuboidal shape to columnar shape.

The stratum corneum is the most superficial layer formed by degenerated keratinocytes called corneocytes. In the last stage, the corneocytes lose the nucleus, are filled with keratin, and are surrounded by a cornified cell layer formed by a shell of interlaced proteins, in addition to a lipid wrapped covalently bonded. The cell death of granular stratum cells causes the progressive loss of desmosomes along the stratum corneum, which leads to peeling or shedding of cell debris. Filaggrin is added to keratin in very tight beams, which causes the cell to collapse into a flattened form.