REVIEWER IN SCIENCE

Lesson 1 – Major Body Organs and Their Functions -Page

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Your body is made up of different organs.

An organ is a group of tissues working together with a specific function.

The Skin
The skin is the largest organ in the human body.
Its main function is to cover and protect the internal body
parts.
It also helps in regulating body temperature and is
responsible for the sense of touch.
The skin is divided into the outer layer (epidermis) and the
inner layer (dermis). Below the epidermis and dermis is the
subcutaneous (fat) layer.
The epidermis is the body’s wall with pores and hair. This is
the part where you apply lotion and other skin products on.
This layer provides enough protection to your body.
The dermis is the layer underneath the epidermis the dermis
is thicker. Its contains root hairs, nerves, blood vessels, seat
glands, and sensory receptors. This is why we can respond to
touch, pressure, temperature, and pain.
The subcutaneous layer contains fatty tissues.

The Brain
The brain is the control center of the human body. It is
responsible for actions and movements. It monitors and
controls both your unconscious and conscious actions. The
brain is located in the head and is protected by the skull. The
different parts of the brain work together.
The three main parts of the brain
1. Cerebrum – for touch, vision, hearing, speech, emotions,
and learning
2. Cerebellum – for body posture and balance
3.The brain stem – for breathing, heart rate, body
temperature, wake and sleep cycles, digestion, sneezing,
coughing, vomiting, and swallowing. The brain is also the site
of consciousness, feelings, memories, and creativity.

The Heart
The human heart is an organ that pumps blood throughout
the body. It is located between the lungs. It has 4 chambers
the left and right atria, and the left and right ventricles. The
heart contracts 70 times per minute. It doesn’t stop
contracting even when you are sleeping. But the heart
adjusts its contraction rate (heartbeat) depending on your
body’s needs and activities.
The Lungs
Your lungs work faster every time you do physical activities
such as running, swimming, and dancing.
The main function of the lungs is to take in oxygen in the
body and give off carbon dioxide. The lungs are paired cone-
shaped organs located inside the chest cavity.

The Bones
The adult skeleton contains 206 bones, where as babies at
birth have more than 300 bones. Some of the babies bones
will fuse together as they grow.
The bones are important. They serve different functions such
as supporting the soft tissues and tendons, providing
structure in the body, and assisting in body movement. The
bones also protect the internal organs from injury. Examples
of bones are the ribs that protect the heart and lungs and the
skull that protects the brain.
The human skeleton is divided into the axial and the
appendicular. The axial skeleton is the vertical axis of the
body. It includes the skull, backbone, ribs, and sternum
(breastbone). The appendicular skeleton is made up of limb
bones ( arms and legs) and limb girdles (pelvis and shoulder
blades). Joints connect bones and allow movement.
The Muscles
The Muscles are attached to the bones that enable the body
to make different movements. Aside from that, there are
other things that the muscles can do. It also helps in holding
the joints steady, maintain posture, and generate heat during
activity. There are three kinds of muscles:
 Skeletal muscles are attached to bones. They are also
called voluntary muscles because you can control them.
 Smooth muscles are found in the walls of internal organs
such as the digestive tract, urinary bladder, and arteries.
They are called involuntary muscles because you cannot
control their movements.
 Cardiac muscles are the muscles that make up the heart.
Like smooth muscles, the contraction of the cardiac
muscles of the heart is involuntary.
The Stomach, The Liver, and The Intestines
The main function of the stomach is to digest the food by
producing gastric juices (mucus, enzymes, and hydrochloric
acid), which break down, mix, and churn the food into a liquid
called chyme. The food can stay in the stomach for 2 to 4
hours.
From the stomach, the digested food goes to the intestines.
The intestines are long tubes from the stomach to the anus.
These are where the body gets nutrients and water. Your
body has a small and a large intestine. The large intestine
surrounds the small intestine
There are the other body organs that are important to the
function of the whole body. One of these organs is the liver.
The liver’s main job is to filter the blood. It is located just
above the stomach. The liver is one of the most important
and also the biggest internal organ in the body. Here are the
different functions of the liver.
 Converts glucose to glycogen
 Helps convert excess amino acids into urea, which is
excreted as urine
 Stores and breaks down body fats
 Breaks down poisonous substances in the blood (e.g. ,
alcohol)
 Gets rid of damaged and dead red blood cells
 Stores iron
 Secretes bile, a green fluid used to break down fats

The Kidneys and The Urinary Bladder

Aside from digestion, our body is also capable of removing
wastes inside the body. The body organs responsible for
that function and other related functions are kidneys and
the urinary bladder. The kidneys are two bean-shaped
organs. Kidneys are responsible for filtering the blood and
removing wastes from it. They also help in maintaining the
balance in the body fluids by keeping the amount,
chemical composition, and acidity of fluids. Each kidney
contains small tubes that filter blood coming from the
different parts of the body.
Together with the kidneys, there is another organ that is
helpful in eliminating wastes in the body. It is called the
urinary bladder. The urinary bladder, or simply the bladder,
is an organ that is expandable. It acts as a storage tank for
liquid waste called urine. It stretches and expands when
filled with urine. The urine remains in the bladder until it is
eliminated out of the body through urination.