ANAT 100 – Module 1 Summary Notes

January 18, 2017

Anatomy  study of structure and derived from Greek word that means ‘to cut apart’

SECTION 1: Importance of Anatomy

Fun Facts:
 Smallest bone and muscle are in the middle of your ears
 Average human brain weighs 3 pounds
 Stomach can expand up to 4x its size
 Digestive tract is 29 feet long
 Heart is almost same size as fist
 Humans can live with one lung

SECTION 2: Organization of Human Body and Anatomical Nomenclature

Organization of Human Body

 There are microscopic (small) and macroscopic (large) structures which are organized by
fundamental levels:
o Chemical  molecule = group of atoms bonded together
o Cellular  cells = smallest living structure and are formed from atoms/molecules
o Tissue  cells that perform specialized functions
o Organ  two or more tissues that work together to perform complex functions
o Organ system  organs working together to coordinate activities
o Organismal  all body systems function interdependently in single human
 Macromolecules form specialized microscopic subunits in cells called organelles
 Four types of tissues:
o Epithelial  covers exposed surfaces and lines body cavities
o Connective  protects, supports and interconnects body parts/organs
o Muscle  produces movement
o Nervous  conducts impulses for internal communication
 Human body maintains homeostasis through the interworkings of all its organ systems

Body Divisions
 Body organized into two main regions:
o Axial  which forms the main vertical axis of the body (includes head, neck and
trunk)
o Appendicular  includes the limbs/appendages that attach to the axis
Organ Systems
 At macroscopic levels, organs can be organized into organ systems based on functions
 Integumentary system  skin, hair, nails, sense receptors, sweat glands
 Skeletal  bones and joints
 Muscular  muscles
 Nervous  brain, spinal cord and nerves
 Endocrine  pituitary gland, hypothalamus, thyroid, etc.
 Digestive  mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, etc.
 Respiratory  nose, pharynx, larynx, trachea, etc.
 Cardiovascular  blood, heart, vessels
 Lymphatic  lymph nodes, thymus, etc.
 Urinary  kidneys, bladder, etc.
 Reproductive  gonads, genitalia, etc.

Body Cavities
 Organ systems are enclosed within distinct spaces which are known as body cavities
 They contain and protect our vital organs
 Posterior aspect (dorsal body cavity):
o Includes the cranial cavity (brain) and vertebral canal (spinal cord)
o Both cavities are encased in bone
 Ventral body cavity:
o Can be separated into two sub-divisions:
 Thoracic cavity (superior)
 The median space in this cavity is called mediastinum
 Contains the pericardial cavity and pleural cavity
 Abdominopelvic (inferior)
 This consists of the abdominal and pelvic cavity
o Both lined by thin serous membranes (a parietal and a visceral layer)
 Between these membranes is a thin serous cavity and some of
these membranes secrete serous fluid
Language of Anatomy
 Anatomic position  upright and eyes look forward to observer with thumbs pointing
away form body
 Major planes of body:
o Sagittal  a vertical plane that divides the body into left and right parts
o Coronal  vertical plane that divides body into anterior (front) and posterior
(back)
o Horizontal (transverse)  cuts perpendicularly along the long axis of body
resulting in a separation of superior (upper) and inferior (lower) parts
o Oblique  minor plane but passes through body at an angle
o Longitudinal  any plane that is perpendicular to the horizontal plane (ex.
Coronal and sagittal planes)
 Terms:
o Superior (cranial) = above/over
o Inferior (caudal) = below/under
o Anterior (ventral) = in front of
o Posterior (dorsal) = behind
o Medial = toward mid-line, middle
o Lateral = toward the side
o Proximal = near
o Distal = away from
o Superficial = closer to surface of body
o Deep = father from surface of body
o Parietal = related to walls of cavity
o Visceral = located on among viscera

SECTION 3: Basic Tissue  Epithelium

4 Basic Types of Tissue

 They are the building blocks for every organ
 Epithelial, connective, nervous and muscular tissues

Epithelium
 Composed of closely apposed (side by side) cells with very little or no intervening
intercellular substance
 Two types:
o *Covering epithelium  cells that covers the external and internal surfaces
o Glandular epithelium  cells that produce and secrete product
 Characteristics:
o Cellularity  adjacent epithelial cells joined by junctions (tight, adhering,
desmosomes, or gap junctions)
o Polarity  has exposed (epical) surface, basal surface and underlying tissue
o Attachment  attached to basal lamina
 o Avascularity  no direct contact blood vessels but receive nutrients from them
o Regeneration  renewed continuously
 Functions:
o Cover and line surfaces
o Protection (skin)
o Permeability (absorption in digestive system)
o Sensation (skin)
o Contractility/secretion

Classifying Epithelium (two parts)

 Cell organization (number of cell layers)
o Simple  only one cell layer thick
o Stratified  two or more and only deepest layer in contact with basal lamina
 Cell shape
o Squamous  flat (thin), wide and irregular in shape
o Cuboidal  about same size on all sides (nucleus centrally located)
o Columnar  taller than they are wide (nucleus is oval and above basal region)

Types:
 Simple squamous  found in lining blood vessels which provides a thin barrier between
vessels and tissues (for transportation)
 Simple cuboidal  found lining some glands
 Simple columnar  found lining GI tract and allow for rapid secretion
 Stratified squamous  make up most superficial layer of skin
 Stratified cuboidal  located in ducts of glands
 Stratified columnar  rare in humans but can be found in urethra
 Transitional*  vary in shape, multiple layers and allow for stretching, domed shaped
surface cells
 Pseudostratified  single layer, short cilia on surface of cells, found in respiratory tract

SECTION 4: Basic Tissue  Connective

Connective
 Most widespread/abundant tissue in human body
 Most diverse

Functions
 Primary functions are support, anchor and connect
 Provides structural framework for body
 Medium for exchange of nutrients and metabolic waste
 Storage and repair
 Defence for invasion of antigens
Components of Connective Tissue
 Cells  many different kinds found: some are fixed (permanent) while others are
wandering (migrants)
 Fibres  three types secreted by fibroblasts: collagen, reticular and elastic fibres
 Ground substance  occupies space between the cells and fibres of CT

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome
 An example of a genetic disorder that can cause defects in collagen
 Affects functions of muscular and skeletal systems
 Normal functions of collagen include:
o Provide strength and flexibility to tissue
 Symptoms:
o Loose skin with high elasticity or stretch
o Fragile skin that cannot resist large forces
o Flexible joints leading to joint pain

Connective Tissue Proper

 Includes tissues that exhibit a variable mixture of both connective tissue cell types and
extracellular protein fibres suspended within a viscous ground substance
 Includes resident (permanent) and wandering (moving throughout) cells
o Types of resident cells include fibroblasts, adipocytes, fixed macrophages, and
mesenchymal cells
o Types of wandering cells include mast/plasma cells, free macrophages and other
leukocytes
 Includes fibres such as collagen, elastic, and reticular
 Divided into 2 categories:
o Loose connective tissues
 Occupies space between and around organs
 Acts as body’s packing material
 Types: areolar, adipose and reticular
o Dense connective tissues
 Composed primarily of protein fibres
 Types: dense regular, dense irregular and elastic
Supporting Connective Tissues
 Cartilage
o Firm tissue but more flexible than bone
o Can be found in the joints between moveable areas, ears and nose, bronchial
tubes and between the vertebrae in spine
o Components:
 Cells in cartilage are primarily chondrocytes
 Collagen or elastic fibres scattered throughout cartilage (strengthen and
support connective tissues)
 Ground substance makes cartilage solid (both cells and fibres reside here)
o Also includes perichondrium (dense irregular connective tissue that provides
cartilage nutrients)
 Not all types of cartilage have this
o Also includes lacunae (houses one or more chondrocytes)
o Types od cartilage:
 Hyaline  built to bear and distribute weight
 Fibrocartilage  tough and inflexible
 Elastic  most flexible
 Bone
o Functions include support, locomotion, protection, blood cell production and
mineral metabolism
o Bone composition  2/3 = inorganic components (minerals, salts) and 1/3 =
organic (fibres, cells, ground substance)
o Has repeating structures of cylindrical structures known as osteons which is
made of concentric rings with a hollow central canal (haversian)