Chapter 11 - Human Body Systems Flashcards
What is one of the fundamental principles of biology revealed from the study of the human body?
The correlation of form and function.
Define anatomy.
The study of an organism’s body parts (form).
Define physiology.
The study of the function of an organism’s body parts (function).
What is the structural hierarchy of an organism from largest to smallest?
1) Organism
2) Organ System
3) Organ
4) Tissue
5) Cell
Define an organ system.
A team of organs that together perform an important body function. (Ex. Circulatory System.)
Define an organ.
Consists of two or more types of issue that work together to perform a specific function. (Ex. Heart)
Define a tissue.
An integrated group of similar cells that together perform a function.
Define a cell.
The basic units of an organism that exist by the trillions in human beings.
What are the four different types of tissues?
1) Connective Tissue
2) Epithelium
3) Nervous Tissue
4) Muscle Tissue
Define connective tissue.
Consists of cells scattered throughout an extracellular matrix.
What are three common examples of connective tissue?
1) Blood
2) Cartilage
3) Bone
What is the most common kind of connective tissue in the human body?
Loose connective tissue that is a matrix of woven fibers that help fold other tissues and organs in place.
What type of connective tissue stores energy in the form of fat globules and provides insulation and padding?
Adipose Tissue.
What is another name for epithelial tissue?
Epithelium.
Define epithelium.
Sheets of tightly packed cells that are fused together. (The skin/epidermis.
What does Nervous Tissue do?
Communicates Signals Between different parts of the body.
What are neurons?
The individual cells that can transmit rapid electrical signals along spindly extensions.
What is muscle tissue composed of?
Bundles of long cells called muscle fibers that contain special proteins that allow it to contact.
What are the three different types of muscle tissues?
1) Smooth Muscle - Found in many body systems like the walls of the digestive tract and blood vessels. Contracted via involuntary signals.
2) Cardiac Muscle - Found in hearth tissue. Branch and join one another to form a large interconnected tissue. This allows the heart to beat as one coordinated muscle contraction. Also involuntary contraction.
3) Skeletal Muscle - Attached to the bones via tendons and allows movement. Appears striped under a microscope. For the most part under voluntary control.
What is homeostasis?
The tendency of the human and animal bodies to remain in a relatively constant state despite external changes.
What disease is a breakdown in the body’s process of homeostasis?
Diabetes.
What is the integumentary system?
Organs such as the skin, hair, and nails that protect the body against physical harm.
What structures do the skin contain aid in temperature regulation?
1) Muscles that can produce heat via shivering.
2) A layer of fat the provides insulation
3) Blood vessels on the surface of the skin that can regulate the amount of heat by widening and narrowing.
What is the most common mechanism in animals to maintain homeostasis?
Negative Feedback.
What is negative feedback?
A form of regulation in which the result of a process inhibits that very process.
What is the job of the digestive system?
To extract energy and nutrients from food.
What is the alimentary canal?
The human digestive system that is divided into specialized digestive organs.
Describe the trip of food through the digestive system.
1) Mouth/Oral Cavity - The site of ingestion and beginning of mechanical (teeth) digestion and chemical (saliva) digestion. Tongue is also important to taste and shape food into a ball and move it into the pharynx.
2) Pharynx - The intersection of the mouth, esophagus and trachea. A small flap called the epiglottis moves to cover the entrance to the trachea and directs food down the esophagus.
3) Esophagus - A muscular tube that connects the pharynx to the stomach. Food moves via muscle contractions called peristalsis. (That’s why you can swallow while upside-down.)
4) Stomach - Has elastic folds that can stretch out to hold large amounts of food and drink. Cells lining the stomach secrete gastric juice that contains enzymes like pepsin that help digest proteins and other molecules. The walls of the stomach churn the food and gastric juice to produce chyme. A sphincter periodically opens to send a small squirt of chyme into the intestines. Takes 2-6 hrs for the stomach to empty.
5) Small Intestine - Narrow but long tube where chemical digestion is completed by enzymes. It is also the primary site of nutrient absorption.
6) Large Intestine - The main portion of the large intestine is the colon where water is absorbed from the alimentary canal and returned to the bloodstream. Remaining waste is formed into feces and stored in the last six inches of the large intestine called the rectum.
7) Anus - Two sphincter muscles regulate the opening of the anus. One is voluntary and the other is involuntary.
What are the accessory organs of the digestive system and what do they do?
1) Liver - Secretes Bile into the small intestine via a duct.
2) Gallbladder - Can store the bile produced by the liver to be secreted later.
3) Pancreas - Liquid secreted by the pancreas via a duct into the small intestine helps neutralize stomach acid and continues the chemical digestion of food.
4) Salivary Glands - Secrete saliva into the mouth. Saliva contains the digestive enzyme salivary amylase which breaks down starches into simple sugars.
How are nutrients absorbed in the small intestine?
The epithelial tissue lining the inside of the small intestine is extensively folded into tiny finger-like extensions called villi. In turn, each cell along the villi has microscopic projections called microvilli. This creates a large surface area where absorption can occur.
What is a ball of food called?
A bolus.
What is the process by which food is used in the body? Describe it step by step.
1) Ingestion - All animals ingest other organisms.
2) Digestion - Via either mechanical or chemical means. Make the food small enough to absorb into the body. Must get broken down into molecular building blocks before use by the body.
3) Absorption - Uptake of nutrients mostly by the villi and microvilli that line the small intestine. From there those nutrients are transported to the rest of the body.
4) Elimination - The disposal of undigested matter from the body. This waste accumulates in the rectum and is expelled via the anus.
What are the USDA Recommended Daily Amounts for the Five Food Groups?
1) Fruits - 2 Cups
2) Vegetables - 3 Cups
3) Grains - 8 Ounces
4) Protein - 6.5 Ounces
5) Dairy - 3 Cups
What are essential nutrients?
Materials the body cannot make by itself.
What are the four classes of essential nutrients?
1) Minerals - Inorganic chemical elements required to maintain health, such as calcium and iron.
2) Vitamins - An organic nutrient required in your diet in only very small amounts. Some are water soluble and others are fat soluble. (C and B = water; A, D, E, and K = fat)
3) Essential Fatty Acids - Used to make fats and other lipids. An example is omega-3 fatty acids that maintain the body’s metabolism and reduce inflammation.
4) Essential Amino Acids - Eight of the twenty amino acids must be obtained from diet because human cells cannot make them. Infants require a ninth. Meat of combination of plant proteins can contain all eight essential amino acids.
What are seven illnesses or malfunctions of the digestive system?
1`) Acid Reflux - Caused by the backflow of partially digested food back into the esophagus.
2) Gallstones - Solid crystals of bile that can obstruct the gallbladder or its ducts.
3) Constipation - Movement of feces is slowed and too much water is reabsorbed. Feces becomes compacted.
4) Appendicitis - Infection of the appendix (small extension on the large intestine). Cured via removal.
5) Cholera - Infection of the small intestine that releases a toxin the produces diarrhea that can lead to sever dehydration.
6) Inflammatory Bowel Disease - Caused by painful inflammation of the intestinal wall.
7) Ulcer - Mucus protecting the lining of the stomach is infected and eroded leading to a gastric ulcer.
What is gastric bypass surgery?
The most common weight loss surgery in the United States. stomach is reduced in size to a small pouch and a portion of the small intestine is attached to the pouch, bypassing a large portion of the stomach. Absorption is reduced and patients feel full sooner.
What are three problems that result form nutritional imbalances?
1) Obesity - Defined as an inappropriately high BMI (ratio of weight to height). One third of Americans are Overweight and another third are obese.
2) Malnutrition - Caused by a diet that either lacks sufficient calories or nutrients. Affects 1 billion people. Most common form is protein deficiency.
3) Eating Disorders - Anorexia Nervosa is an example where someone starves themselves out of fear of gaining weight. Bulimia is a pattern of binge eating followed by vomiting.
What is the job of the respiratory system?
To facilitate the exchange of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide between an organism and its environment.
Describe the movement of air through the respiratory system.
1) Nasal Cavity - Through the nostrils and mouth it enters and is filtered, passed over smell receptors, warmed, and moistened.
2) Pharynx - The opening at the back of the throat that serves as the junction between the digestive and respiratory system.
3) Epiglottis - Opens and allows air to move into the trachea.
4) Trachea - Conveys air from the pharynx.
5) Larynx - A pair of vocal chords that vibrates to produce sound.
6) Bronchi - Trachea branch into two bronchi that each lead to a lung.
7) Bronchioles - The bronchi branch into smaller and smaller tubes.
8) Alveoli - Small sacs at the end of each bronchiole that are the actual site of gas exchange.
9) Diaphragm - A sheet of muscle that forms the border between the chest cavity and the abdomen. Controls inhalation and exhalation.
What happens during inhalation and exhalation?
Inhalation - Air is inhaled. Rib Cage Expands. Diaphragm Contracts (Moves Down)
Exhalation - Air Expelled. Rib Cage Gets Smaller. Diaphragm relaxes (Moves Up)
What are four issues faced in the Respiratory System?
1) Bronchitis - Caused by Infection of the Bronchioles by viruses and produces a cough and mucus production.
2) Emphysema - Progressively Worsening Shortness of breath often caused by long term exposure to tobacco smoke or air pollution.
3) Asthma - A long term inflammation of the airway.
4) Upper Respiratory Infections - Viral and Bacterial infections are often the cause and these infections occur in the nose, pharynx, or larynx.
What is the job of the circulatory system?
An internal transport network that allows materials to diffuse in and out.
What is the cardiovascular system?
Consists of the heart and blood vessels. The heart pumps blood through a branching series of tubes and the blood carries nutrients and wastes between different locations in the body.
What are the major parts of the circulatory system?
1) Heart - Receives Blood Through the Veins and Pumps it Out Into the Arteries.
2) Arteries - Vessels that Carry Oxygenated Blood Away From the Heart.
3) Arterioles - The smaller tubes that branch from arteries.
4) Capillaries - Tiny blood vessels that run through nearly every tissue in the body. They have thin walls to allow for easy exchange of materials between the blood and the cells of the body. Vital organs have a continuous supply of blood but other areas are only when needed.
5) Veins - Vessels that return deoxygenated blood to the heart.
6) Venules - The small tubes where blood exits the capillaries.
What are the two circuits in the human cardiovascular system?
1) Pulmonary Circuit - Shuttles Blood From the Heart to the Lungs where CO2 is expelled and O2 is picked up and then back to heart.
2) Systemic Circuit - Carries Oxygenated blood from the heart to the rest of the body and deoxygenated blood to the heart from the body.
What are the three types of blood vessels and what is their function?
1) Veins - Deoxygenated Blood Back to Heart
2) Arteries - Oxygenated Blood to Body
3) Capillaries - The Meeting place to join Arterioles to Venuoles.
What are the differences between arteries and veins?
1) Wall Thickness - Arteries have thicker walls due to the high blood pressure from the hearth pumping more blood into the arteries than can flow. Capillaries have thin leaky walls.
2) Valves - Only veins have valves to ensure the flow of blood in the right direction.
