BSC 2085: Lesson 1 - Major Themes of Anatomy and Physiology & Atlas A

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering anatomical examination methods, subdisciplines, structural hierarchy, homeostasis, feedback mechanisms, gradients, medical imaging, and directional terminology from Lesson 1 and Atlas A.

Anatomy

The study of body structure.

Physiology

The study of body function.

Terminologia Anatomica (TA)

The standard international anatomical vocabulary published in 1998 by anatomists from over 50 countries to establish uniform Latin terms and English equivalents.

Inspection

Examining the structure of the human body by simply looking at its appearance.

Palpation

Examining body structure by feeling a part with the hands.

Auscultation

Examining structure by listening to natural sounds produced by the body.

Percussion

Examining structure by tapping on the body, feeling for resistance, and listening to emitted sounds for abnormalities.

Dissection

The cutting and separating of human body tissues to reveal tissue relationships, typically performed on a cadaver.

Cadaver

A dead human body used for medical study and dissection.

Comparative Anatomy

The study and dissection of multiple species to analyze structural form, function, and evolutionary relationships.

Exploratory Surgery

Opening the living body surgically to diagnose internal abnormalities, now largely replaced by noninvasive medical imaging.

Radiology

The branch of medicine specializing in imaging internal structures without surgery.

Gross Anatomy

The study of anatomical structures visible to the naked eye.

Surface Anatomy

A subdivision of gross anatomy that focuses on external body features.

Regional Anatomy

A subdivision of gross anatomy that focuses on all structures within specific body areas.

Systemic Anatomy

A subdivision of gross anatomy that focuses on individual organ systems.

Clinical Anatomy

A subdivision of gross anatomy that focuses on medical specialties, including pathological and radiographic anatomy.

Pathological Anatomy

The branch of clinical anatomy studying structural changes in tissues and organs caused by illness or disease.

Radiographic Anatomy

The study of internal body structures visualized through specialized imaging techniques.

Developmental Anatomy

The study of structural changes that occur from conception to death, including embryology.

Microscopic Anatomy

The study of structures that require the assistance of a microscope to be seen.

Cytology

The study of the structure and function of individual cells.

Ultrastructure

Fine structural detail of cells and organelles resolved using an electron microscope.

Histology

The microscopic examination of tissues.

Histopathology

The microscopic examination of tissues specifically for signs of disease.

Neurophysiology

The subdiscipline of physiology concerned with nervous system functions.

Endocrinology

The subdiscipline of physiology concerned with hormones and their functional mechanisms.

Systemic Physiology

The subdiscipline of physiology examining the functions of an entire organ system.

Pathophysiology

The study of functional mechanisms underlying disease processes.

Comparative Physiology

The study of biological functions across different species, serving as the basis for understanding human physiology and developing new medical procedures.

Hierarchy of Complexity

The structural organization of the body arranged from highest to lowest complexity: organism, organ system, organ, tissue, cell, organelle, macromolecule, molecule, and atom.

Organism

A single, complete individual representing the highest level of structural complexity.

Organ System

A group of organs with a unique collective function, such as circulation, respiration, or digestion.

Organ

A structure composed of two or more tissue types that work together to carry out a specific function, having defined anatomical boundaries.

Tissue

A group of similar cells and cell products forming a discrete region of an organ and performing a specific function.

Cell

The smallest unit of an organism that carries out all basic functions of life.

Organelle

A microscopic structure within a cell that carries out an individual function.

Molecule

A particle composed of two or more chemically bound atoms.

Macromolecule

The largest class of biological molecules, such as proteins, fats, and DNA.

Atom

The smallest particle of matter that exhibits a unique chemical identity.

Situs Inversus

An anatomical variation in which the normal left-right arrangement of internal organs is completely reversed.

Palmaris Longus

A forearm muscle that is absent in a portion of the population as a normal anatomical variation.

Reference Male

A standard physiological baseline defined as a 22-year-old male weighing $154\,\text{lb}$, performing light physical activity, and consuming $2,800\,\text{kcal/day}$.

Reference Female

A standard physiological baseline defined as a 22-year-old female weighing $128\,\text{lb}$, performing light physical activity, and consuming $2,000\,\text{kcal/day}$.

Homeostasis

The physiological ability to detect internal changes, activate mechanisms that oppose them, and thereby maintain relatively stable internal conditions.

Claude Bernard

The French physiologist ($1813\text{ to }1878$) who first noted that internal body conditions remain fairly constant despite changing external environments.

Walter Cannon

The American physiologist ($1871\text{ to }1945$) who coined the term homeostasis.

Negative Feedback

A homeostatic mechanism in which the body senses a physiological change and negates or reverses it to maintain dynamic equilibrium around a set point.

Dynamic Equilibrium

A state in which internal conditions fluctuate within a limited range around a set point.

Set Point

The average or target value around which a homeostatic variable fluctuates.

Vasodilation

The widening of blood vessels near the skin surface to promote heat loss when core body temperature rises above normal.

Vasoconstriction

The narrowing of blood vessels near the skin surface to retain body heat when core body temperature drops below normal.

Baroreflex

A homeostatic negative feedback response that adjusts heart rate and blood pressure to correct blood pressure drops caused by postural changes.

Receptor

A sensory structure in a feedback loop that senses a change in the body.

Integrating (Control) Center

The processing component of a feedback loop (such as the cardiac center of the brainstem) that evaluates sensory input and directs a corrective response.

Effector

A cell or organ (such as the heart) that carries out the final corrective action directed by an integrating center to restore homeostasis.

Positive Feedback

A self-amplifying cycle in which a physiological change triggers responses that lead to an even greater change in the same direction.

Gradient

A difference in chemical concentration, charge, temperature, or pressure between two points.

Down the Gradient

Movement of matter or energy from a higher value to a lower value without requiring metabolic energy expenditure.

Up the Gradient

Movement of matter or energy from a lower value to a higher value, requiring the expenditure of metabolic energy.

Pressure Gradient

A pressure difference between two points that causes fluids, such as blood, to flow from high to low pressure.

Concentration Gradient

A difference in solute concentration between two regions driving chemical diffusion.

Electrical Gradient

A difference in electrical charge across a barrier driving the movement of charged particles.

Electrochemical Gradient

The combined effect of concentration and electrical gradients driving ion movement across a membrane.

Thermal Gradient

A temperature difference between two regions driving the flow of heat.

Acronym

A pronounceable word formed from the initial letter or letters of a series of words, such as PET scan.

Eponym

A term derived from the name of a person, such as the Achilles tendon.

Radiography

The oldest medical imaging technique, using low-intensity X-rays that penetrate tissues to darken film, leaving dense structures like bones white.

Radiopaque

A dense substance injected or swallowed to fill hollow structures so they absorb X-rays and show clearly on radiographs.

Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA)

An imaging technique where a contrast medium is injected into blood vessels and a background X-ray image is digitally subtracted to visualize vascular flow and blockages clearly.

Computed Tomography (CT scan)

An imaging technique using low-intensity X-rays and computer analysis to create sharp cross-sectional slice images useful for identifying tumors, aneurysms, and kidney stones.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

A non-X-ray medical imaging technique using magnetic fields and radio waves to generate high-resolution images of soft tissues.

Functional MRI (fMRI)

A variation of MRI that displays real-time changes in brain tissue activity.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET scan)

A functional imaging technique that assesses tissue metabolic state by measuring consumption of radioactively labeled glucose, showing dark regions in damaged tissue.

Sonography

A safe imaging method employing high-frequency sound waves echoing off internal organs, widely used in obstetrics to avoid harmful X-rays.

Anatomical Position

The standard reference posture in which a subject stands upright, facing forward, with feet flat, arms at the sides, and palms facing anteriorly.

Supine

The posture of lying flat with the face and stomach oriented superiorly (upward).

Prone

The posture of lying flat with the face and stomach oriented inferiorly (downward).

Frontal (Coronal) Plane

A vertical anatomical plane dividing the body into anterior (front) and posterior (back) portions.

Sagittal Plane

A vertical anatomical plane dividing the body into left and right portions.

Midsagittal Plane

A sagittal plane passing directly through the midline, dividing the body into equal left and right halves.

Parasagittal Plane

A sagittal plane offset from the midline, dividing the body into unequal left and right portions.

Transverse Plane

A horizontal anatomical plane dividing the body into superior (upper) and inferior (lower) portions.

Ventral

Directional term meaning toward the front or belly.

Dorsal

Directional term meaning toward the back or spine.

Anterior

Directional term meaning toward the ventral side of the body.

Posterior

Directional term meaning toward the dorsal side of the body.

Cephalic

Directional term meaning toward the head or superior end.

Rostral

Directional term meaning toward the forehead or nose.

Caudal

Directional term meaning toward the tail or inferior end.

Superior

Directional term meaning above.

Inferior

Directional term meaning below.

Medial

Directional term meaning toward the median plane.

Lateral

Directional term meaning away from the median plane.

Proximal

Directional term meaning closer to the point of attachment or origin.

Distal

Directional term meaning farther from the point of attachment or origin.

Ipsilateral

Directional term meaning on the same side of the body.

Contralateral

Directional term meaning on opposite sides of the body.

Superficial

Directional term meaning closer to the body surface.

Deep

Directional term meaning farther from the body surface.