BODY ORGANIZATION

Define the term Anatomy and physiology.

Anatomy is the study of structure (morphology) of organism and the physical relationships
between the body parts. Anatomy is divided into gross (macroscopic) and microscopic anatomy.
Gross anatomy (macroscopic) considers large structures visible with unaided eye.
▪Surface anatomy: study of external and superficial features.
▪Regional anatomy is the study of the internal and superficial marking in specific region
of the body like the head, neck and trunk.
▪Systematic anatomy considers the body structure by system, example the cardiovascular
system consists of heart, blood and blood vessels.
▪Developmental anatomy from conception to death
▪Clinical anatomy medical specialties
Microscopic anatomy considers body parts that can only be seen by with the aid of microscope.
▪Cytology is the study of cellular structure (individual cells and structures).
▪Histology is the study of tissues and their structures

Physiology is the study of the process of living things or function of the human body.
▪Cell physiology is the study of cellular function.
▪Special physiology is the study of the physiology of specific organs like the renal
physiology (kidney function).
▪Systematic physiology is the study of the function of specific body system (like
respiratory, reproductive).
▪Pathological physiology (pathology) is the study of function and functional changes
associated with disease.
▪Pharmacology physiology is the study of drug effects in the body.

Describe the basic biological functions necessary for survival.

Living organism has specific characteristics that distinguish them from nonliving things. The
basic biological functions necessary for survival include organization, responsiveness,
movement, reproduction, metabolism and growth.

Define the anatomical position: the body is standing erect; the face is forward and the hands at
the side with palms facing forward and the feet together. Person lying down can also be in
anatomic position, supine lying down with face up and prone face down.

Anatomical terms (terminology) are the basic term used to communicate effectively in the health
care.
Directional terms describe the relative position of one body part to another:
Superior body part is above another part (mouth is superior to the neck)
Inferior below another part (abdomen is inferior to the chest)
Anterior (ventral) in front of another part (lungs anterior to vertebral column)
Posterior (dorsal) lying behind another part (heart is behind the sternum)
Medial near the midline of the body (nose is medial to the ears)
Lateral toward the side away from the midline (ears are lateral the eyes)
Visceral refers to the covering of the internal organs
 Parietal covers the walls of body cavity.

Anatomical regions are used to describe general area of interest or injury. Two types:
Abdominopelvic quadrants formed by imaginary perpendicular lines that intersect at the
umbilicus, divides the abdomen into four quadrants right upper quadrant, left upper quadrant,
right lower quadrant and left lower quadrant.
Abdominopelvic regions divide the abdomen into nine regions and show the relationships
among quadrants, regions and internal organs.

Body planes: three body planes:

Sagital plane divide the body into left and right portions
Transverse (horizontal) divides the body into superior and inferior portions
Frontal plane divides the body into anterior and posterior portions.

Body cavities are the space containing the internal organs (viscera). Functions allow changes in
size of internal organs and protect the internal organs from shocks.
The body cavities include dorsal and ventral cavities. The ventral is the larger of the two.
Serous membranes line body cavities and cover organs. Consists of parietal and visceral layer:
▪Parietal layer lines the cavity
▪Visceral layer cover the organ
Dorsal cavity divided into:
Cranial containing the brain
Spinal contains the spinal cord.
Ventral cavity is divided into two by diaphragm: thoracic cavity and abdominopelvic cavity
Abdominopelvic cavity divides further into abdominal and pelvic cavity but there is no clear cut
partition.
Thoracic cavity:
Mediastinum containing blood vessels, trachea, esophagus and thymus in the upper
region and a single pericardial cavity containing the heart
Paired pleural cavities (lungs located in these regions.)
Abdominopelvic cavity: peritoneal cavity lined by serous membrane (peritoneum).
Parietal peritoneum lines the internal body walls (cavity). Visceral peritoneum covers the
internal organs
▪Abdominal cavity is the superior portion
▪Pelvic cavity inferior portion – contains reproductive organs, rectum and bladder

Organizational levels of the body

Chemical (molecular), cellular, tissue, organ, organ system and organism level

Define Homeostasis
Homeostasis is the existence of constant internal environment.
Homeostasis regulation refers to changes in physiological systems that preserve homeostasis.

Regulations involve:
Receptor sensitive to environmental changes or stimulus
Control center (integration) receives and process information from receptors
Effectors respond to command from control center (carries out instructions)

Regulation of homeostasis: negative and positive feedback

When stressor causes the variation in internal environment, the body system will work to bring it
back to normal. This is accomplished by negative feedback, examples thermoregulation, and
blood pressure regulation. Negative feedback is the more important of the two.
Positive feedback the initial stimulus produces response that reinforces that stimulus. Positive
fed back stimulate or amplifies changes, body moves away from homeostasis and normal range
is lost example formation of blood clot.
Failure of homeostasis results in a disease state or death.