Definition of Anatomy and Physiology

Physiology is the study of the function of body parts and the body as a whole. Some specializations within
each of these sciences follow:
Anatomy is the study of body parts visible to the naked eye, such as the heart or bones. Histology is the
study of tissues at the microscopic level.

The 7 Characteristics of Life

1st Characteristic of Life

Cell & Organization
* Example each cell can only perform the job associated with its specific
function such as heart cells, brain cells etc.

2nd Characteristic of Life

Energy use and metabolism
*To maintain their internal order, energy is needed by organisms. Energy is
utilized in chemical reactions.

3rd Characteristic of Life

Response to environmental changes
responds to stimuli.

4th Characteristic of Life

Regulation and homeostasis
* ex. internal regulation of our body to maintain a stable environment.

5th Characteristic of Life

Growth and development
*all living things get larger and more complex throughout the organism's life

6th Characteristic of Life

Reproduction

7th Characteristic of Life

Biological evolution
*the change over time of living organisms

LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE HUMAN

BODY

chemical level
includes atoms organized into molecules
(example: DNA, glucose)
cellular level
molecules are organized into cells which are the basic structural and
functional living units an organism
(example: muscle cells, nerve cells, blood cells)

tissue level
cells are organized into tissues to perform a particular function
(example: epitheleal, connective, muscle and nervous tissues)

organ level
structures that are composed of 2 or more different types of tissues, that have
specific functions and usually have recognizable shapes
(example: liver, stomach, heart, lungs, brain)
system level or organ-system level
consists of related organs with a common function
(example: digestive system, which breaks down and absorbs food, and
includes the mouth, salivary glands, esophagus, stomach, small intestine,
large intestine, liver, gallbladder and pancreas)

organismal level
all the systems are structurally integrated and function cooperatively to
constitute the total organsim
(example: the human body)

Homeostasis is a key concept in understanding how our body works. It means 'keeping things
constant', and comes from two Greek words homeo, meaning 'similar' and stasis, meaning 'stable'. A
more formal definition of homeostasis is: a characteristic of a system that regulates its internal
environment and tends to maintain a stable, relatively constant condition of properties.

ANATOMY IS the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their
parts;[1] with further division intozootomy (animals) and phytotomy (plants).[citation needed] In some of its
facets, anatomy is related to embryology and comparative anatomy, which itself is closely related
to evolutionary biology and phylogeny.[2] Human anatomy is one of the basic essential sciences
ofmedicine.[3] The discipline of anatomy is divided into macroscopic and microscopic anatomy.
Macroscopic anatomy, or gross anatomy, is the examination of an animals body parts using
unaided eyesight. Gross anatomy also includes the branch of superficial anatomy. Microscopic
anatomy involves the use of optical instruments in the study of the tissues of various structures,
known as histology and also in the study of cells.

The history of anatomy is characterized by a progressive understanding of the functions of

the organs and structures of the human body. Methods have also improved dramatically, advancing
from the examination of animals by dissection of carcasses and cadavers (corpses) to 20th
century medical imaging techniques including X-ray, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging.
PHYSIOLOGY (/fzildi/; from Ancient Greek (physis), meaning "nature, origin", and -
(-logia), meaning "study of"[1]) is the scientific study of the normal function in living
systems.[2] A sub-discipline of biology, its focus is in how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells,
and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system.[3] Given
the size of the field it is divided into, among others, animal physiology (including that
of human), plant physiology, cellular physiology, microbial physiology (see microbial metabolism),
bacterial physiology, and viral physiology.[3] Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded to
those who make significant achievements in this discipline since 1901 by theRoyal Swedish
Academy of Sciences. In medicine, a physiologic state is one occurring from normal body function,
rather than pathologically, which is centered on the abnormalities that occur in animal diseases,
including humans.