ANATOMY BASIC

Directional Terms

*Note that the terms anterior and ventral mean the same thing in humans. However, in four-legged animals ventral refers to the belly side and is therefore inferior. Similarly, the
terms posterior and dorsal mean the same thing in humans, but in four-legged animals dorsal refers to the back side and is therefore superior.
†Recall that the midline is an imaginary vertical line that divides the body into equal right and left sides.
Levels of Body Structural Organization and
1. The human body consists of six levels of structural organization: chemical, cellular, tissue, organ, system, and organismal.
a) Cells are the basic structural and functional living units of an organism and the smallest living units in the human body.
b) Tissues are groups of cells that work together to perform a particular function.
c) Organs are composed of different types of tissues; and they have specific functions and usually have recognizable shapes.
d) Systems consist of related organs that have a common function.
e) An organism is any living individual.

• Characteristics of the Living Human Organism

• 1. All organisms carry on certain processes that distinguish them from nonliving things.
2. Among the life processes in humans are
 Metabolism- is the sum of all the chemical processes that occur in the body. One phase of metabolism is catabolism the breakdown of complex chemical substances into
simpler components. The other phase of metabolism is anabolism the building up of complex chemical substances from smaller, simpler components.
 Responsiveness - is the body’s ability to detect and respond to changes. For example, an increase in body temperature during a fever represents a change in the internal
environment (within the body), and turning your head toward the sound of squealing brakes is a response to a change in the external environment (out- side the body) to
prepare the body for a potential threat.
 Movement- includes motion of the whole body, individual organs, single cells, and even tiny structures inside cells. For ex ample, the coordinated action of leg muscles
moves your whole body from one place to another when you walk or run.
 Growth- is an increase in body size that results from an increase in the size of existing cells..
 Differentiation, -is the development of a cell from an unspecialized to a specialized state. IT IS through differentiation, a single fertilized human egg (ovum) develops
into an embryo, and then into a fetus, an infant, a child, and finally an adult.
 reproduction.- refers to (1) the formation of new cells for tissue growth, repair, or replacement, or (2) the production of a new individual.

1. Systems of the human organism: the integumentary, skeletal, muscular, nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, digestive, urinary, and reproductive
systems.
Organ System
Planes and Sections
1.A sagittal plane is a vertical plane that divides the body or an organ into
right and left sides. More specifically, when such a plane passes through
the midline of the body or an organ and divides it into equal right and
left sides, it is called a midsagittal plane or a median plane. The midline
is an imagi- nary vertical line that divides the body into equal left and
right sides. If the sagittal plane does not pass through the midline but in-
stead divides the body or an organ into unequal right and left sides, it is
called a parasagittal plane (para- 􏰀 near).
2.A frontal plane divides the body or an organ into anterior (front) and
posterior (back) portions.
3.A transverse plane divides the body or an organ into superior (upper)
and inferior (lower) portions.
4.An oblique plane passes through the body or an organ at an oblique
angle (any angle other than a 90-degree angle).
Body Cavities
- Body cavities are spaces within the body that help protect, separate, and support internal organs.
- Bones, muscles, ligaments, and other structures separate the various body cavities from one another.

- TAKENOTE:
- The cranial bones form a hollow space of the head called the cranial cavity which contains the brain.
- The bones of the vertebral column (backbone) form the vertebral (spinal) canal (VER-te-bral), which contains the spinal cord. The cranial cavity
and vertebral canal are continuous with one another.
- The major body cavities of the trunk are the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavities.
- The thoracic cavity or chest cavity is formed by the ribs, the muscles of the chest, the sternum (breastbone), and the thoracic portion of the
vertebral column.
- Within the thoracic cavity are the pericardial cavity a fluid-filled space that surrounds the heart, and two fluid-filled spaces called pleural cavities
(PLOOR-al; pleur- 􏰀 rib or side), one around each lung.
- The central part of the thoracic cavity is an anatomical region called the mediastinum. It is between the lungs, extending from the sternum to the
vertebral column and from the first rib to the diaphragm .The mediastinum contains all thoracic organs except the lungs themselves. Among the
structures in the mediastinum are the heart, esophagus, tra- chea, thymus, and several large blood vessels that enter and exit the heart.
- The diaphragm is a dome-shaped muscle that separates the thoracic cavity from the abdominopelvic cavity.
-The abdominopelvic cavity extends from the diaphragm to the groin and is encircled by the abdominal muscular wall and the bones and muscles of
the pelvis.
-As the name suggests, the abdominopelvic cavity is di- vided into two portions, even though no wall separates them
-The superior portion, the abdominal cavity contains the stomach, spleen, liver, gallbladder, small intestine, and most of the large intestine.
-The inferior portion, the pelvic cavity, con- tains the urinary bladder, portions of the large intestine, and inter- nal organs of the reproductive
system.
Organs inside the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavities are called viscera
• Vip:: analyze what are those parts that belong to thoracic cavity
Chemical
basis of life
• TAKENOTE; The plasma membrane is the boundary that separates the living cell from its surroundings
• =The plasma membrane exhibits selective permeability, allowing some substances to cross it more easily than
others
=SOME THE FUNCTION OF PLASMA MEMBRANE ARE
a. TO PROTECT CELLULAR CONTENTS;
b. MAKES CONTACT WITH OTHER CELLS;
c. IT CONTAINS CHANNELS, TRANSPORTERS, RECEPTORS, ENZYMES,CELL-IDENTITY MARKERS, AND LINKER
PROTEINS;
d. MEDIATES ENTRY AND EXIT OF SUBSTANCES.

- The plasma membrane, a flexible yet sturdy (TOUGH) barrier that surrounds and contains the cytoplasm of a cell.
- The basic structural framework of the plasma membrane is the lipid bilayer, two back-to-back layers made up of
three types of lipid molecules—phospholipids, cholesterol, and glycolipids .
- About 75% of the membrane lipids are phospholipids, lipids that contain phosphorus.
- Present in smaller amounts are cholesterol (about 20%), a steroid with an attached !OH (hydroxyl) group,
- and various glycolipids (about 5%), lipids with attached carbohydrate groups.

- Technically, Membranes have been chemically analyzed and found to be made of lipids and proteins
- Phospholipids are the most abundant lipid in the plasma membrane and of course , various proteins are
embedded in it (integral protein and pheripheral protein.
Figure 7.5

Fibers of extra-
cellular matrix (ECM)

Glyco- Carbohydrate
protein
Glycolipid
EXTRACELLULAR
SIDE OF
MEMBRANE

Cholesterol

Microfilaments Peripheral
of cytoskeleton proteins
Integral
protein
CYTOPLASMIC SIDE
OF MEMBRANE
The Fluidity of Membranes
-Phospholipids in the plasma membrane can move
within the bilayer
-Most of the lipids, and some proteins, drift laterally
-Rarely does a molecule flip-flop transversely across
the membrane