Anatomy, Physiology, Cell Chemistry, Structure, and Metabolism Flashcards

A comprehensive vocabulary review deck generated from lecture notes covering anatomy and physiology fundamentals, directional planes and cavities, cell chemistry, organelles, cell membrane transport, cell cycle and division, stem cell differentiation, and metabolic pathways.

Anatomy

The study of the body's structures, divided into categories such as gross, microscopic, regional, and systemic anatomy.

Physiology

The study of the body's functions, focusing on the chemistry and physics of body structures.

Homeostasis

The body's ability to maintain a stable internal environment in response to a changing external environment.

Anatomical Position

A standard position where a person stands erect, facing forward, with arms at the sides, and toes and palms directed forward.

Coronal Plane

A body plane (also called frontal plane) that divides the body into anterior (front) and posterior (back) sections.

Sagittal Plane

A body plane that divides the body vertically into left and right sections.

Transverse Plane

A body plane that divides the body horizontally into superior (upper) and inferior (lower) sections.

Dorsal Body Cavity

The posterior cavity of the body that contains the cranial cavity (housing the brain) and the spinal/vertebral cavity (housing the spinal cord).

Ventral Body Cavity

The anterior cavity of the body composed of the thoracic cavity (pleural and pericardial cavities) and the abdominopelvic cavity.

Matter

Anything that occupies space and has mass, composed of one or more elements.

Element

A pure substance that cannot be created or broken down by ordinary chemical means.

Atom

The smallest quantity of an element that retains the unique chemical properties of that element, made of protons, neutrons, and electrons.

Isotope

An atom of an element that has the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons.

Molecule

A chemical structure composed of two or more atoms held together by chemical bonds.

Compound

A substance composed of two or more different types of atoms (elements) held together by chemical bonds.

Ion

An atom or molecule with a positive or negative electrical charge.

Kinetic Energy

The form of energy associated with objects or particles in motion.

Potential Energy

Energy due to position or structure, such as chemical energy stored in molecular bonds.

Chemical Energy

A form of potential energy stored in the chemical bonds of atoms and molecules.

Enzyme

A specialized protein that acts as a catalyst to speed up biochemical reactions by acting on substrates.

Acid

A substance that releases hydrogen ions ($H^+$) into solution.

Base

A substance that accepts $H^+$ ions or releases hydroxyl ions ($OH^-$) into solution.

pH

A unit of measurement indicating the concentration of hydrogen ions ($H^+$) in a solution, on a scale from 0 to 14.

Buffer

A mixture of weak acids and weak bases that works to keep the pH of a solution within a constant range.

Macromolecule

A large biological polymer made up of monomeric subunits; includes carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.

Cytosol

The fluid gel-like substance inside the cell, located outside the nucleus and surrounding organelles.

Nucleus

The organelle surrounded by a double nuclear envelope that stores and processes genetic information and controls cell metabolism and protein synthesis.

Nucleolus

The region inside the nucleus responsible for rRNA synthesis and assembly of ribosomal subunits.

Mitochondria

Double-membrane organelles with inner folds called cristae that function as energy factories producing $95\%$ of cellular ATP.

Endoplasmic Reticulum

A network of membranous channels in the cytoplasm, classified as rough (modifies and packages proteins) or smooth (synthesizes lipids and carbohydrates and detoxifies drugs/toxins).

Ribosome

An organelle constructed of RNA and proteins that functions in protein synthesis, found either fixed to rough ER or free in cytoplasm.

Golgi Apparatus

Stacks of flattened membranes (cisternae) that store, alter, and package secretory products and lysosomal enzymes.

Lysosome

A membrane-bound vesicle containing digestive enzymes for intracellular removal of damaged organelles or pathogens.

Centrosome

A cytoplasmic area containing two centrioles composed of 9 microtubule triplets in a 9+0 array, essential for microtubule organization and chromosome movement during cell division.

Microvilli

Extensions of the plasma membrane containing microfilaments that function to increase cell surface area for absorption of extracellular materials.

Cilia

Long extensions of the plasma membrane containing microtubules that function as sensors (primary cilia) or move materials over cell surfaces (motile cilia).

Selective Permeability

A feature of the cell membrane's phospholipid bilayer that allows only specific small, nonpolar molecules to pass through unassisted.

Passive Transport

Movement of substances down a concentration gradient across a cell membrane without consuming cellular energy.

Active Transport

Movement of substances across a cell membrane against a concentration gradient, requiring cellular energy in the form of ATP.

Simple Diffusion

Passive, unassisted movement of solute particles down a concentration gradient from higher concentration to lower concentration until equilibrium is reached.

Facilitated Diffusion

Passive transport of substances down a concentration gradient across the cell membrane aided by channel or carrier proteins.

Osmosis

The passive diffusion of water molecules across a selectively permeable membrane down its concentration gradient, typically using aquaporin channels.

Filtration

The process where water and dissolved substances are pushed from an area of higher hydrostatic pressure to an area of lower pressure.

Mitosis

Nuclear cell division resulting in two identical diploid daughter cells, used for bodily growth, tissue repair, and replacement.

Meiosis

Cell division involving two rounds of division that produces four non-identical haploid daughter cells (gametes: sperm or eggs).

Totipotent Stem Cell

An unspecialized stem cell that has the potential to differentiate into any cell type to produce an entire organism.

Pluripotent Stem Cell

A stem cell capable of developing into any human tissue type, but unable to produce a complete organism.

Multipotent Stem Cell

A stem cell that can differentiate into multiple specific cell types within a single cell lineage.

Unipotent Stem Cell

A stem cell that can only reproduce to generate more of its own specific cell type.

Hematopoiesis

The differentiation process of multipotent hematopoietic stem cells into various blood and immune cell types.

Metabolism

The total sum of all chemical and biochemical reactions occurring within the human body.

Catabolism

Metabolic reactions that break down complex molecules into smaller units and release energy (ATP).

Anabolism

Metabolic reactions that construct complex macromolecules from smaller monomeric subunits, consuming energy (ATP).

Glycolysis

An anaerobic process in the cytoplasm where one glucose molecule is broken down into two pyruvate molecules, yielding a net of 2 ATP and 2 NADH.

Krebs Cycle

An aerobic metabolic cycle in the mitochondrion that processes acetyl-CoA to produce 3 NADH, 1 $FADH_2$, and 1 ATP per cycle.

Gluconeogenesis

The anabolic pathway occurring in the liver where new glucose molecules are synthesized from non-carbohydrate precursors like pyruvate, lactate, glycerol, alanine, and glutamine.

Beta-Oxidation

The process of fatty acid oxidation that breaks down fatty acids into acetyl-CoA molecules to enter the Krebs cycle.

Lipogenesis

The anabolic process occurring in adipocytes and hepatocytes that creates lipids (fats) from excess acetyl-CoA.

Essential Amino Acids

Amino acids that the body cannot synthesize on its own and therefore must be acquired through diet.

Gene Expression

The multi-step process in which genetic instructions stored in DNA are transcribed into RNA and translated into proteins.

Transcription

The synthesis of an mRNA molecule from a DNA template strand, taking place in the cell nucleus.

Translation

The assembly of amino acids into proteins by ribosomes in the cytoplasm using mRNA codons.

Transcription Factors

Proteins that regulate gene expression by modifying how RNA polymerase binds to specific promoter sequences on a DNA molecule.