Human Anatomy and Physiology

CHAPTER 1: THE HUMAN ORGANISM

Why study anatomy and physiology?
Knowing human anatomy and physiology is also the basis for understanding
diseases.
Health professionals need a sound knowledge of structure and function to perform
their duties.
For evaluation of recommended treatments, critically review advertisements and
reports in the particular literature and rationally discuss the human body with health
professionals and non-professionals.

Anatomy
Scientific discipline that investigates the body’s STRUCTURE.
Ana means “apart” and tomy means “to cut”
Art separates the body parts of an organism to ascertain their positions,
relations, structure, and function.

Different Levels of Studying

Anatomy:
 Developmental Anatomy
- the branch of anatomy that studies
structural changes of an individual
from fertilization to maturity.

 Embryology - a branch of science that is related to the formation, growth,

and development of the embryo. It deals
with the prenatal stage of development
beginning from the formation of gametes,
fertilization, the formation of the zygote,
development of the embryo and fetus to
the birth of a new individual.

 Cytology – study and examines

the structural features of cells. The
earliest phase of cytology began with the
English scientist Robert Hooke’s
microscopic investigations of cork
in 1665.

 Histology – examines tissues, which are composed

of cells and materials surrounding them.
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 Gross Anatomy – is the study of structures that can be examined without

the aid of a microscope, and can be approached either systemically or
regionally.

 Systemic anatomy – approached for introductory references

wherein the human body is studied system by system.

 Regional Anatomy – deals with the study of the human body in a

given region, an approach taken in graduate school programs.

 Surface Anatomy – implicates looking at the exterior of the body to

visualize structures (use of structures as anatomical landmarks) deeper inside
the body.
 Anterior view – at or near the front of the body.
 Posterior view – the back or direction toward the back of the body.
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 Lateral view – A visual perspective from the side.

Anterior Posterior Lateral

 Anatomical Imaging – anatomical imaging techniques allow medical practitioners

to diagnose internal structures without performing incisions within the body such as in
the case of exploratory laparotomy.
Anatomical imaging provides information for diagnosing disease using
technologies capable of creating pictures of internal structures, allowing medical
personnel to look inside the body with amazing accuracy and without the trauma and
risk of exploratory surgery.
Anatomical imaging techniques allow medical practitioners to diagnose
internal structures without performing incisions within the body such as in the case of
exploratory laparotomy.
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Wilhelm Roentgen
He was the first medical scientist to use x-rays to see inside the body.

COMMON IMAGING TECHNIQUES:

 Radiography - Provides flat, two-dimensional (2-D) images of the body,
extremely shortwave electromagnetic radiation moves through the body,
exposing a photographic plate to form a radiograph.

 Ultrasound- an imaging test that uses sound waves to create a picture (also
known as a sonogram) of organs, tissues, and other structures inside the
body. Unlike x-rays, ultrasounds don't use any radiation. It is commonly used

to evaluate the condition of the fetus during pregnancy.

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 Computed Tomography (CT scan) - Technique that can take several

scans short distances apart and stack the slices to produce a 3-D image and
constructs the image of a “slice” through the body at the point where the x-ray
beam was focused and rotated. (Low-intensity x-ray tube is rotated through a
360-degree arc around the patient, and the images are fed into a computer.)

 Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) - Particularly sensitive in

detecting some forms of cancer far more readily than can a CT scan.
Directs radio waves at a person lying inside a large electromagnetic
field.

 Digital Subtraction Angiography – the 3-D radiographic image of an

organ, such as the brain, is made and stored in a computer. A radiopaque
dye is injected into the blood and a second radiographic computer image is
made.

 Positron Emission Tomography (PET) - Particularly useful in analyzing

the brain and identifying the metabolic states of various tissues. Detected
gamma rays pinpoint the metabolically active cells.
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PHYSIOLOGY
Scientific investigation of the processes or FUNCTIONS of living things.
MAJOR GOALS:
1. To understand and predict the body’s responses to stimuli
2. To understand how the body maintains conditions within a narrow range of
values in a constantly changing environment.
DIFFERENT LEVELS OF STUDYING PHYSIOLOGY
 CELL PHYSIOLOGY
 SYSTEMIC PHYSIOLOGY
 NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
 CARDIOVASCULAR PHYSIOLOGY
 EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY
ANATOMICAL ANOMALIES - physical characteristics that differ from the normal pattern.
Varies in severity from relatively harmless to life-threatening.

Blue baby syndrome

 also known as cyanosis.
 The discoloration is most obvious in your baby’s
lips and hands.
 caused when there is a shortage of oxygen in
your baby’s blood. The low oxygen level causes
their skin to turn a different color than normal
(like blue or purple).
 typically caused by abnormalities in the heart,
lungs, or blood.

Polydactyly
 The name comes from the Greek poly (many)
and dactylos (finger).
 is a condition where someone is born with
one or more extra fingers or toes. It can occur
on one or both hands or feet.

Anatomical anomalies in ears

 Malformations are due to
disrupted embryogenesis, which
results in deficient growth of
structures.
 anotia (absence of external ear)
 microtia (underdeveloped,
usually malformed ear)
 cryptotia (ear cartilage partially buried beneath the skin)
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Anatomical anomalies in female hymen:

PATHOLOGY
 Medical science that deals with the structural and functional changes resulting from
disease.
 And all aspects of diseases in general with the emphasis on the cause and
development of abnormal conditions.
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STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION OF THE HUMAN BODY

1. CHEMICAL LEVEL
 simplest level
 Involves interactions between atoms, which are tiny building blocks of matter.
Atoms combine to form molecules, such as water, sugar, lipids, and proteins.
The function of a molecule is intimately related to its structure.
 Ex: Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) & Glucose.

2. CELLULAR LEVEL
 Molecules combine to form organelles which are the small structures inside
cells
 basic structural and functional units of an organism that are composed of
chemicals.
 Ex: Muscle Cell, Nerve Cell, Epithelial Cell

3. TISSUE LEVEL
 group of cells that perform the same function.
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A. Epithelial Tissue - covers body surface; lines hollow organs and

cavities and forms glands.

B. Connective Tissue - connects, supports, and protects body organs

while distributing blood vessels to other tissue

C. Muscle Tissue - contracts to make body parts move and generates

heat.

D. Nervous Tissue - carries information through nerve impulses.

4. ORGAN LEVEL
 composed of two or more tissues that perform the same function.
 PERISTALSIS- movement of gastrointestinal organs
 Ex: Stomach, Heart, Brain, Skin, Bones, Lungs.

5. ORGAN SYSTEM LEVEL

 consists of related organs with a common function

11 MAJOR ORGAN SYSTEMS:

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MAJOR ORGANS OF THE BODY

6. ORGANISM LEVEL
 An organism is any living thing considered as a whole—whether composed of
one cell, such as a bacterium, or of trillions of cells, such as a human. The
human organism is a network of organ systems, all mutually dependent on
one another.

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE
1. ORGANIZATION
 Specific interrelationships among the parts of an organism and how those
parts interact to perform specific functions.
 Disruption of this organized state can result in loss of functions or even death.

2. METABOLISM
 refers to all of the chemical reactions taking place in the cells and internal
environment of an organism.
 Metabolism is necessary for other vital functions, such as responsiveness,
growth, development, and reproduction.
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3. RESPONSIVENESS
 Ability of the organism to sense changes in its external or internal
environment and adjust to those changes. (Actions such as moving toward
the water and moving away from danger or poor environmental conditions)
 Production of sweat to lower or body temperature to normal range (internal
environment adjustment).
4. GROWTH
 Increase in the size or number of cells, which produces an overall
enlargement of all or part of an organism.
 An increase in the materials surrounding cells can also contribute to growth.
 (Muscular enlargement due to exercise, adult skin contrast to infants, and
bone growth due to deposition of mineralized materials around the cells with
an increase in cell number)
5. DEVELOPMENT
 Changes an organism undergoes through time, beginning with fertilization
and ending at death (usually involving growth)
 Morphogenesis: Change in shape of tissues, organs, and the entire
organism.
 Differentiation: Changes in a cell’s structure and function from an immature,
generalized state to a mature, specialized state.
6. REPRODUCTION
 Formation of new cells or new organisms.
 Without the reproduction of cells, growth, and development are not possible.
 Without reproduction of organisms, species become extinct

BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
 Since humans share many characteristics with other organisms, an increase in the
understanding of humans was made possible through biomedical research.
 Ultimate answers to questions about humans can be obtained only from humans
because other organisms differ from humans in significant ways.

ANDREAS VESALIUS

 was a 16th-century anatomist, physician, and

author of one of the most influential books on
human anatomy, De Humani Corporis Fabrica
Libri Septem.
 Carefully examined human cadavers and
began to correct the textbooks.
 Current knowledge in molecular biology and
physiology has not been confirmed in
humans.

CLAUDIUS GALEN
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 was a Greek physician, surgeon, and philosopher in the Roman Empire. 

 Described a large number of anatomical structures supposedly present in humans
but observed only in other animals.
 Galen described the liver as having five lobes. This is true for rats, but not for
humans, who have four-lobed livers.

HOMEOSTASIS Homeo- sameness

 Existence and maintenance of a relatively constant Stasis- standstill
environment within the body.
 Condition in which body functions, body fluids, and other
factors of the internal environment are maintained at levels suitable to support life.
 Achieved through the body’s active regulation of conditions that are constantly
changing.
 Does not mean that all variables remain within the same narrow range of values at all
times.
 Deviation from the usual range of values can be beneficial to the body.
 Disease disrupts homeostasis and sometimes results in death.
Variables: Varied conditions with changing values.
Set Pont: Normal Value
Normal Range: Normal set of values

Mechanism of Homeostasis: Feedback System

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1. NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
 reverse a change in a variable.
 Decreases the output, bringing the system back to a stable state.
 Stimulus - A changed variable that initiates the homeostatic mechanism.
 Consists of:
o RECEPTOR - Monitors the value of a variable.
o CONTROL CENTER - Establishes the set point around which the
variable is maintained through communication with the receptors
and effectors.
o EFFECTOR - Adjust the value of the variable, usually back toward
the set point.
 Examples: Control of Body Temperature, Blood Sugar Regulation

2. POSITIVE FEEDBACK
 strengthen or reinforce a change.
 Occurs when a response to the original stimulus results in the deviation
from the set point becoming even greater.
 Mechanism which requires the body to re-achieve homeostasis.
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 Some positive-feedback mechanisms can be harmful. (e.g.: decreased

blood flow to the heart) although few mechanisms are normal for
maintaining homeostasis.
 Results from deviations further from the normal value.