Chapter 1: Introduction to the Human Body Flashcards
What are the essential atoms for maintaining life?
Carbon (C), Hydrogen (H), Oxygen (O), Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Calcium (Ca), Sulfur (S)
What is a molecule?
Two atoms joined together
Provide 2 familiar molecules found in the body.
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and glucose commonly known as blood sugar.
Give the 6 levels of structural organization in the human body.
- Chemical level
- Cellular level
- Tissue level
- Organ level
- System level
- Organism level
What combines to form cells?
Molecules
What is a cell?
a small and basic structural and functional units of an organism that are composed of chemicals.
What is a tissue?
group of cells working with their surrounding materials to perform a particular function. Similar to the way words are put together to form sentences.
What are the four basic types of tissues found in the body? and their functions.
- Epithelial tissue - covers body surfaces, lines hollow organs and cavities, and forms glands
- Connective tissue - connects, supports, and protects body organs while distributing blood vessels to other tissues.
- Muscular tissue - contracts to make body parts move and generates heat.
- Nervous tissue - carries information from one part of the body to another through nerve impulses.
Describe the organ level.
Different types of tissues joined together, similar to the relationship between sentences and paragraphs.
What is an organ?
structures composed of two or more different types of tissues with specific functions and usually with recognizable shapes.
Describe the system level.
A system is likened to a chapter consisting of related organs (paragraphs). An example is the digestive system, which consists of organs such as the mouth, salivary glands and others, in order to break down and absorb foods.
Describe the organism level.
An organism is any living individual, which can be compared to a book. All the parts of the human body functioning together constitute the total organism.
What is metabolism? describe the phases of metabolism.
It is the sum of all chemical processes that occur in the body.
The phases of metabolism are:
- Catabol (“Throwing down”) ism (condition) - breakdown of complex chemical substances into simpler components.
- Anabol (“raising up”) ism - building up of complex chemical substances from smaller, simpler components.
Describe responsiveness.
The body’s ability to detect and respond to changes/stimuli.
Example: an increase in body temperature during a fever = change in the internal environment, and turning your head towards the sound of squealing breaks = response to a change in the external environment to prepare the body from a potential threat.
Describe movement.
Motion of the whole body, individual organs, single cells, and even tiny structure within the cells. For example, the coordinated action of leg muscles moves your whole body from one place to another when you walk or run.
Describe growth.
An increase in body size that results from an increase in the size of existing cells, increase in the number of cells or both. A tissue also sometimes increases in size because the amount of material between cells increases.
Describe differentiation.
The development of a cell from an unspecialized to a specialized state.
(Specialization means adapting to a particular mode of life or habitat through the course of evolution.)
Describe reproduction.
formation of new cells for tissue growth, repair or replacement, or the production of a new individual.
Describe Homeostasis.
(Homeo = sameness, -stasis = standing still) maintenance of the stable conditions in the body’s internal environment which occurs because of the ceaseless interplay of the body’s many regulatory systems.
What is an intracellular fluid?
ICF or intracellular fluids are the fluid found within the cells.
What is an extracellular fluid?
ECF or extracellular fluids are the fluid found outside the body cells.
What is interstitial fluid?
It is the ECF that fills the narrow spaces between cells of tissues. The interstitial fluid has to have the correct pH.
What is the ECF within blood vessels called?
Blood plasma
Give examples of how the homeostasis in the human body is disturbed?
Disruptions can come from the external and internal environments. An example of the external would be the lack of oxygen for that two-mile run. While internal would be the decreasing of blood glucose level when you skip breakfast. In some cases, intense disruption of homeostasis to the human body can also occur such as poisoning, overexposure to heat, or major surgery.
