Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1

The Human Organism

1.1 Anatomy
 Human anatomy and physiology is the study of the structure and function of the
human body; also provides the basis for understanding diseases.
 Anatomy is the scientific discipline that instigates the structure of the body.
 The word anatomy means to dissect, or cut apart and separate the parts of the body
to study.
 Two basic approaches of anatomy are systematic anatomy and regional anatomy.
 Systematic anatomy is the study of the body by systems.
 Regional anatomy is the study of the organization of the body by areas.
 Two general ways to examine the internal structures of a living person are surface
anatomy and anatomical imaging.
 Surface anatomy is the study of external features, such as bony projections, which
serve as landmarks for locating deeper structures.
 Anatomical imaging involves technologies to create pictures of internal structures.

1.2 Physiology
 Physiology is a scientific discipline that deals with the processes or functions of
living things.
 Two major goals for studying physiology: (1) to understand and predict the body’s
responses to stimuli and (2) to understand how the body maintains internal
conditions within a narrow range of values in the presence of continually changing
internal and external environments.
 Human physiology is the study of a human.
 Cellular physiology and systematic physiology are subdivisions that emphasize
specific organizational levels.

1.3 Structural & Functional Organization of the Human Body

 Chemical Level – involves how atoms interact and combine into molecules
 Cell Level – molecules can combine to form organelles which are the small
structures that make up cells.
 Tissue Level – group of similar cells and the materials surrounding them;
epithelial, connective, muscle, and nervous
 Organ Level – composed of two or more tissue types that together perform on or more
common functions
 Organ System Level – group of organs classified as a unit because of a common
function or set of functions; integumentary, skeletal, muscular, nervous,
endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, digestive, urinary, and
reproductive
 Organism Level – any living thing considered as a whole
Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1

1.4 Characteristics of Life

 Organization
 Metabolism
 Responsiveness
 Growth
 Development
 Reproduction

1.5 Homeostasis
 Homeostasis (homeo-, the same; -stasis, to stop) is the condition in which body
functions, body fluids, and other factors of the internal environment are
maintained within a range of values suitable to support life.
 Negative-feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.
 NFM have three components: receptor, control center, effector
 Receptor monitors the value of a variable
 Control center determines the set point for the variable and receives input from
the receptor about the variable
 Effector can change the value of the variable when directed by the control center
Examples of processes that utilize NF loops:
Thermoregulation (if body temperature changes, mechanisms are induced to restore
normal levels)
Blood Sugar Regulation (insulin lowers blood glucose when levels are high;
glucagon raises blood glucose when levels are low)
Osmoregulation (ADH is secreted to retain water when dehydrated and its release
is inhibited when the body is hydrated)
 Positive-feedback mechanisms make deviations from normal even greater. Although a
few positive-feedback mechanisms normally exist in the body, most positive-
feedback mechanisms are harmful.
Examples of processes that utilize PF loops:
Childbirth – stretching of uterine walls cause contractions that further stretch
the walls (continues until birthing occurs)
Lactation – the child feeding stimulates milk production which causes further
feeding (continues until baby stop feeding)
Ovulation – the dominant follicle releases estrogen which stimulates LH and FSH
release to promote further follicular growth
Blood Clotting – platelets release clotting factors which cause more platelets to
aggregate at the site of injury

1.6 Terminology and the Body Plan

Body Positions
 Anatomical position – standing upright with the face directed forward, the upper
limbs hanging to the sides, and the palms of the hands facing forward
Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1

 Supine – lying face upward

 Prone – lying face downward

Directional Terms
 Superior – above, up
 Inferior – below, down
 Anterior – front
 Posterior – back
 Ventral – belly, anterior
 Dorsal – back
 Proximal – nearest
 Distal – distant
 Medial – midline
 Lateral – away from midline
 Superficial – close to the surface of the body
 Deep – toward the interior of the body

Body Parts and Regions

 Central region – head, neck, trunk
 Trunk – thorax(chest), abdomen(belly, pelvis(hips)
 Upper limb – arm, forearm, wrist, hand
 Lower limb – thigh, leg, knee, ankle
Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1

 Abdomen – often subdivided into four quadrants (right-upper, left-upper, right-

lower, left0lower)
 Abdomen – nine regions: epigastric, right and left hypochondriac, umbilical, right
and left lumbar, hypogastric, right and left iliac
Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1

Planes
 Planes – imaginary flat surface
 Sectioning the body – a way to look inside and observe
 Sagittal plane – runs vertically through the body; separates it into left and
right parts; literally means the flight of an arrow
 Median plane – sagittal plane that passes through the midline of the body,
dividing it into equal right and left halves
 Transverse plane – horizontal; runs parallel to the surface of the ground;
separates the body into superior and inferior parts
 Frontal plane – coronal plane; runs vertically from right to left and divides the
body into anterior and posterior parts
 Longitudinal section – a cut along the length of the organ
 Transverse section – cross section; cuts completely through an organ
 Oblique section – a cut made diagonally
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Body Cavities
 Thoracic cavity – surrounded by a ribcage; separated from the abdominal cavity by
muscular diaphragm
 Mediastinum – center structure; a section which houses the heart, the thymus, the
trachea, the esophagus, and other structures; between the two lungs
 Abdominal cavity – bounded primarily by the abdominal muscles and contains the
stomach, the intestines, the liver, the spleen, the pancreas, and the kidneys
 Pelvic cavity – small space enclosed by the bones of the pelvis and contains the
urinary bladder, part of the large intestines, and the internal reproductive
organs
 Abdominopelvic cavity – sometimes called to abdominal and pelvic cavity since they
are physically separated

Serous Membrane
 Serous membranes – line the trunk cavities and cover the organs of these cavities
 Parietal serous membrane – lines the wall of the cavity
 Visceral serous membrane – covers the internal organs
 Thoracic cavity contains three serous membrane-lined cavities: a pericardial
cavity and two pleural cavities
 Pericardial cavity – surrounds the heart; parietal pericardium, visceral
peritoneum, pericardial fluid
 Pleural cavity – surrounds the lungs; visceral pleura, parietal pleura, pleural
fluid
 Peritoneal cavity – surrounds certain abdominal and pelvic organs; visceral
peritoneum, parietal peritoneum, peritoneal fluid
 Mesenteries – parts of the peritoneum that hold the abdominal organs in place and
provide a passageway for blood vessels and nerves to organs
 Retroperitoneal organs are found “behind” the parietal peritoneum; ex. Kidneys,
adrenal glands, part of the pancreas, parts of the intestines, and the urinary
bladder
Anatomy & Physiology Lecture – Chapter 1