Are Non Keratinized Cells Dead?

The surface layer of keratinized epithelium is composed of dead cells which have keratin while the surface layer of nonkeratinized epithelium is composed of living cells and keratin is absent in those cells.

Are Keratinized cells dead?

Keratinocytes in the stratum corneum (corneocytes) are dead. They eventually undergo desquamation, an orderly process in which individual corneocytes detach from their neighbors at the skin surface and are swept away.

Are epithelial cells living or dead?

Epithelial tissues are nearly completely avascular. For instance, no blood vessels cross the basement membrane to enter the tissue, and nutrients must come by diffusion or absorption from underlying tissues or the surface. Many epithelial tissues are capable of rapidly replacing damaged and dead cells.