Lesson 1 Human Organism: Chemical Basis Of Life Flashcards
What is the chemical level of organization in the human body?
Interaction of atoms.
Define the cell level of organization.
Structural and functional unit of living organisms.
What does the tissue level of organization consist of?
Group of similar cells and the materials surrounding them.
What is the organ level of organization?
One or more tissues functioning together.
Define the organ system level of organization.
Group of organs functioning together.
What is the organism level of organization?
Any living thing.
What does ‘organization’ refer to in the characteristics of life?
Condition in which there are specific relationships and functions.
Define metabolism in the context of life.
All chemical reactions of the body.
What is responsiveness in terms of the characteristics of life?
Ability to sense changes and adjust.
What does growth refer to in biological terms?
Increase in size and/or number of cells.
Define development in the context of living organisms.
Changes in an organism over time.
What is differentiation?
Change from general to specific.
What does morphogenesis refer to?
Change in shape of tissues, organs.
Define reproduction in biological terms.
New cells or new organisms.
What is homeostasis?
Maintenance of relatively constant internal environment within the body.
What are variables in the context of homeostasis?
Conditions that fluctuate around the set point to establish a normal range of values.
What is a set point?
The ideal normal value of a variable.
True or False: Negative feedback regulates most systems in the body.
True.
What role does the receptor play in negative feedback?
Monitors the value of some variable.
What is the function of the control center in negative feedback?
Establishes the set point.
What is the effector in the context of negative feedback?
Can change the value of the variable.
What is a stimulus in negative feedback mechanisms?
Deviation from the set point detected by the receptor.
What happens during positive feedback?
Response makes the deviation greater.
True or False: Positive feedback is common in healthy individuals.
False.
Provide an example of normal positive feedback.
Childbirth.
What is orthostatic hypotension?
Significant drop in blood pressure upon standing.
What happens to blood pressure when a person moves from lying down to standing?
Blood ‘pools’ within the veins below the heart, resulting in a drop in blood pressure.
What are some causes of orthostatic hypotension in older individuals?
Age-related decreases in neural and cardiovascular responses, decreased fluid intake, dehydration.
What is the anatomical position?
Body erect, face forward, feet together, palms face forward.
Define the term ‘supine’.
Lying face upward.
What does ‘prone’ mean?
Lying face downward.
Differentiate between superior and inferior.
Superior is toward the head; inferior is away from the head.
What is the difference between medial and lateral?
Medial is relative to the midline; lateral is away from the midline.
Explain the terms proximal and distal.
Proximal is closer to the trunk; distal is farther from the trunk.
What do superficial and deep refer to?
Superficial is relative to the surface of the body; deep is further from the surface.
What does anterior mean?
Toward the front of the body.
Define posterior.
Toward the back of the body.
What does a sagittal plane do?
Divides body into left and right portions.
What is a median plane?
A sagittal plane down the midline of the body.
What does the frontal (coronal) plane divide?
Divides body into anterior and posterior sections.
What is the function of the transverse (horizontal) plane?
Divides body into superior and inferior sections.
What is the definition of a longitudinal cut?
Cut along the length of an organ.
What is a transverse (cross) cut?
Cut at a right angle to the length of the organ.
What does the dorsal body cavity contain?
Cranial cavity houses the brain; vertebral canal houses the spinal cord.
What is contained within the thoracic cavity?
Pleural cavities (each enclosing a lung) and a medial mediastinum (containing the heart).
What does the abdominopelvic cavity consist of?
Abdominal cavity and pelvic cavity.
What organs are found in the abdominal cavity?
Many digestive organs (e.g., stomach, intestines, liver) and spleen.
What organs are located in the pelvic cavity?
Urinary bladder, urethra, rectum, reproductive organs.
What are serous membranes?
Cover the organs of trunk cavities and line the cavity.
What does the pericardium surround?
Surrounds the heart.
What is the function of the pleura?
Surrounds the lungs and lines the thoracic cavity.
What does the peritoneum surround?
Surrounds many abdominal organs and lines the abdominopelvic cavity.
Define pericarditis.
Inflammation of the serous pericardium.
What is cardiac tamponade?
Condition where fluid or blood accumulates in the pericardial cavity, compressing the heart.
What can cause cardiac tamponade?
Rupture of the heart wall, rupture of blood vessels, damage due to radiation therapy, trauma.
How can an organ be located within the abdominopelvic cavity but not be within the peritoneal cavity?
Some organs may be retroperitoneal, meaning they lie behind the peritoneum.
