Anatomy and Physiology Lecture Exam Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from lecture exams 1, 2, and 3, including cellular biology, integumentary system, musculoskeletal tissues, and neurophysiology.

Complementarity

The core principle of Anatomy and Physiology stating that function always reflects structure; what a structure can do depends on its specific form.

Structural Organization Levels

The hierarchy of complexity in the body including the chemical, cellular, tissue, organ, organ system, and organismal levels.

Homeostasis

The maintenance of a relatively stable internal environment despite continuous changes in the outside world.

Negative Feedback

A homeostatic control mechanism where the output shuts off the original effect of the stimulus or reduces its intensity.

Positive Feedback

A homeostatic control mechanism where the result or response enhances the original stimulus so that the response is accelerated.

Serous Membranes

Double-layered membranes (consisting of parietal and visceral layers) that produce fluid to reduce friction between organs and the body wall.

Intracellular Fluid

The fluid contained within the cells.

Extracellular Fluid

The fluid outside of the cells, which includes interstitial fluid and plasma.

Plasma Membrane

The lipid bilayer structure that forms the outer boundary of the cell and regulates the passage of materials.

Passive Transport

Movement of substances across the cell membrane that does not require the expenditure of cellular energy ($ATP$).

Active Transport

Movement of substances across the cell membrane that requires energy ($ATP$) to move solutes against a concentration gradient.

Osmosis

The diffusion of a solvent, such as water, through a selectively permeable membrane.

Tonicity

The ability of a solution to change the shape or tone of cells by altering their internal water volume.

Hyaline Cartilage

The most common type of cartilage, providing firm support with some pliability.

Fibrocartilage

Cartilage with great tensile strength and the ability to absorb compressive shock, found in the intervertebral discs.

Elastic Cartilage

Cartilage with more elastic fibers, allowing it to maintain the shape of a structure while allowing great flexibility.

Compact Bone

The dense outer layer of bone that looks smooth and solid to the naked eye.

Spongy Bone

Internal bone tissue containing a honeycomb of small needle-like or flat pieces called trabeculae.

Synovial Joints

Freely movable joints in which the articulating bones are separated by a fluid-containing joint cavity.

Sarcolemma

The plasma membrane of a muscle fiber.

Sarcoplasm

The cytoplasm of a muscle fiber.

Myofibril

Rod-like contractile elements that occupy most of the muscle cell volume.

Sarcomere

The smallest contractile unit of a muscle fiber; the region of a myofibril between two successive Z discs.

Sarcoplasmic Reticulum

A specialized endoplasmic reticulum that regulates the intracellular levels of ionic calcium ($Ca^{2+}$) in muscle cells.

Transverse Tubule (T-tubule)

Invaginations of the sarcolemma that run between terminal cisternae to conduct electrical impulses deep into the muscle fiber.

Motor Unit

A motor neuron and all the muscle fibers it supplies.

Recruitment

The process of bringing more motor units into play to increase the force of muscle contraction.

Summation

The phenomenon in which a second muscle contraction occurs before the first has completely relaxed, resulting in a stronger response.

CNS

The Central Nervous System, consisting of the brain and spinal cord.

PNS

The Peripheral Nervous System, consisting of nerves and ganglia outside the CNS.

Somatic Nervous System

The division of the motor nervous system that conducts impulses from the CNS to skeletal muscles; often called the voluntary nervous system.

Autonomic Nervous System

The division of the motor nervous system that regulates the activity of smooth muscles, cardiac muscles, and glands; also called the involuntary nervous system.

Glial Cells

Supporting cells in the nervous system that surround and wrap the more delicate neurons.

Resting Membrane Potential (RMP)

The potential difference or voltage across the membrane of a resting cell, typically valued around $-70\,mV$.

Action Potential (AP)

A brief reversal of membrane potential with a total amplitude of about $100\,mV$ ($from -70\,mV to +30\,mV$).

EPSP

Excitatory Postsynaptic Potential; a local depolarization of the postsynaptic membrane that brings the neuron closer to AP threshold.

IPSP

Inhibitory Postsynaptic Potential; a local hyperpolarization of the postsynaptic membrane that drives the neuron away from AP threshold.

Meninges

The three connective tissue membranes (dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater) that lie just external to the CNS organs.

Mixed Nerve

A nerve that contains both sensory (afferent) and motor (efferent) fibers.