HUMAN BIOLOGY (Human anatomy and physiology) ,

LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION and

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIVING ORGANISMS.

Student learning outcomes:

•Define the terms Anatomy and Physiology
•List the structural levels of human body – chemicals and atoms, cells, tissues,
organ(s), organ system(s) and organism
•Briefly summarize an overview of the functions of all the organ systems in
the body
•Briefly describe the characteristic of living organisms
HUMAN BIOLOGY
 HUMAN BIOLOGY
SUMMARY

 Includes;
 HUMAN ANATOMY
 HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY
 HUMAN BIOLOGY
 HUMAN ANATOMY – Science of study of gross structure
of human body with the help of naked eyes as well as
microscopy.
 HUMAN BIOLOGY
 HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY – is the science of the study of the
normal body functions.
 HUMAN BIOLOGY
WHY YOU NEED TO STUDY HUMAN BIOLOGY?
 HUMAN ANATOMY
To be able to know what a normal structure in the body looks
like (with naked eye and under the microscope)

 HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY
To be able to know and understand the normal function of the
structures (gross, tissue and cellular level ) in the body .

 DISEASES
If you able to identify and understand what “normal” is like than
you will be able to recognize and understand abnormal (i.e.
diseases) states (structure and function) of the body.
 COURSE COMPONENTS
(ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY)
- Basics on cell - structure and function
- Basics on tissues - structure and function
- Organ system – structure and function
PHYSIOLOGY – is the study of normal body function

IMPORTANT CONCEPTS IN PHYSIOLOGY

1. Levels of organization
2. Homeostasis
3. Homeostasis control mechanisms
6 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY

1. Chemical level
2. Cellular level
3. Tissue level
4. Organ level
5. System level
6. Organism
 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY

1. CHEMICAL LEVEL
- Atoms and molecules
- Atoms essential for maintaining life are; Carbon (C), hydrogen (H),
oxygen (O), nitrogen (N) and calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P) and sulfur
(S).
- Molecules E.g. H20, CO2, DNA, RNA, glucose
 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY
2. CELLULAR LEVEL
- CELL is a basic structural and functional unit of human body
- Membrane bound (plasma membrane)
- Contains fluid and organelles
- All cells have basic common features.
(E.g. O2 combines with nutrients to release energy for cell
function)
- All cells have certain features in common.
- They specialize or differentiate to perform a unique function
(E.g. muscle cell – function is contraction
; intestinal cells – function is absorption)
LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF
THE BODY
3. TISSUE LEVEL
- TISSUE is a group of similar cells (and materials that surround
them) that work together to perform a particular function.
- 4 basic types of tissue; (more detailed notes later)
1. EPITHEAL
2. MUSCLE TISSUE
3. CONNECTIVE TISSUE
4. NERVOUS TISSUE
 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY

4. ORGAN LEVEL
- ORGAN structure composed of two or more tissues that are joined
together and have a recognizable shape and specialized function.
- Example of organs - heart, liver, lungs, brain, stomach
- Specific e.g. – STOMACH
- outer covering is called the serosa – it has epithelial
and connective tissue.
- the serosa protects the stomach and reduces
friction with surrounding tissues when the stomach
moves and rubs against other body structures.
Stomach – note the serosa of stomach
 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY
5. SYSTEM LEVEL
– consists of related organs with a common function.
- Human body has 11 major systems.

(e.g. Digestive system)

 LEVELS OF STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATION OF THE
BODY

6. ORGANISM – all the parts of body functioning with one

another; comprises the total organism (one living organism)
 MAJOR SYSTEMS OF THE BODY
 The 11 body systems are;
1. INTEGUMENTARY SYSTEM
2. SKELETAL SYSTEM
3. MUSCULAR SYSTEM
4. NERVOUS SYSTEM
5. ENDOCRINE SYSTEM
6. CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
7. LYMPHATIC AND IMMUNE SYSTEM
8. RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
9. DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
10. URINARY SYSTEM
11. REPRODUCTION
 BODY SYSTEMS
1. INTEGUMENTARY SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - Skin and structures derived from it
(e.g. hair and nails, sweat glands, and oil glands)
 FUNCTION -
1. Helps regulate body temperature
2. Eliminates some wastes,
3. Helps produce vitamin D
4. Monitors certain stimuli (e.g. temperature and blood
pressure.
INTEGUMENTARY SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
2. SKELETAL SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS – all bones of the body, associated
cartilages and joints of the body.
 FUNCTIONS -
1. Supports and protects body
2. Assists in body movements
3. Origin of cells that give rise to blood cells.
4. Stores minerals
SKELETAL SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
3. MUSCULAR SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - skeletal muscle (muscle attached to
bones), smooth muscle and cardiac muscle.
 FUNCTIONS –
1. Powers the movement of the body (e.g. walking)
2. Stabilized body posture
3. Generates heat
MUSCULAR SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
4. NERVOUS SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - Brain, spinal cord, nerves and special
sense organs (E.g. eye and ears).
 FUNCTIONS:
1. Regulates body activities through action potential (nerve
impulses) by detecting changes (stimuli) in internal and external
environments, interpreting the changes, responding to the changes
by inducing muscular contractions or glandular secretions.
NERVOUS
SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
5. ENDOCRINE SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - All hormone-producing glands and cells
such as the pituitary glands, thyroid gland and pancreas.
 FUNCTION
1. Regulates body activities through hormones, chemical transported
in the blood to various target organs of the body
ENDOCRINAL
SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
6. CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - Heart, blood vessels and blood.
 FUNCTION
1. Distributes oxygen and nutrients to cells,
2. Carries CO2 and wastes away from cells
3. Helps maintain the acid-base balance of the body
4. Protects against disease, prevents hemorrhage by forming blood
clots.
5. Regulates body temperature
CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
7. LYMPHATIC AND IMMUNE SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - Lymphatic vessels, lymph, structures
or organs containing lymphatic tissue (large numbers of white
blood cells called lymphocytes), such as spleen, thymus gland,
lymph nodes and tonsils.
 FUNCTIONS -
1. Returns proteins in blood and plasma (liquid portion of blood)
to the cardiovascular system,
2. Transports fats from the gastrointestinal tract to the
cardiovascular system,
3. Serves as a site or maturation and proliferation of certain white
blood cells
4. Helps protect against disease through the production of proteins
called antibodies as well as responses.
LYMPHATIC
AND
IMMUNE
SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
8. RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS – Lungs and series of associated
passage ways leading into and out of them.
 FUNCTIONS:
1. Regulate the
acid-base balance
of the body
2. Supplies O2,
eliminates CO2
3. Helps produce
sounds.
 BODY SYSTEMS
9. DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - a long tube called the gastrointestinal
tract and associated organs (includes salivary glands, liver,
gall-bladder and pancreas).
 FUNCTION -
1. Performs physical and chemical breakdown of food
and absorption of nutrients for use by cells
2. Helps eliminates solid and other wastes
DIGESTIVE
SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
10. URINARY SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS - Kidneys, ureters, urinary bladder and
urethra
 FUNCTION -
1. Produces, stores and eliminates urine
2. Regulates volume and chemical composition of blood
3. Eliminates wastes
4. Regulates fluid and electrolyte balance
5. Helps maintain acid-base and calcium balance of the body
6. Secretes a hormone (erythropoietin) that regulates red blood cell
production.
FEMALE
URINARY
SYSTEM
MALE
URINARY
SYSTEM
 BODY SYSTEMS
11. REPRODUCTION SYSTEM
 PRINCIPAL ORGANS -
- Organs (testes in males and ovaries in females) that produce
reproductive cells or gametes (ova in females and sperm in
males)
- Other organs such as the uterine (fallopian) tubes and
uterus in females; the epididymis, ductus (vas) deferens and
penis in males that transport and store reproductive cells.
 FUNCTION -
1. Produce gametes, which can unite to form a new organism,
2. Produces hormones that help regulate metabolism.
MALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
 Characteristics of living organism
• Six important processes of the human body.

1. Metabolism
2. Responsiveness
3. Movement
4. Growth
5. Differentiation
6. reproduction
 Characteristics of living organism

1. Metabolism – sum of all chemicals processes in the body

Catabolism – type of metabolism that include the breakdown of
complex chemical substances into simpler components
E.g. digestive enzymes chemically splits proteins in food into
amino acids
Anabolism – type of metabolism that include building up complex
chemical substances from smaller simpler components.
E.g. amino acids absorbed from the gut is then used to build new
complex proteins in the body (e.g. muscles)
 Characteristics of living organism

2. Responsiveness
i.e. the body’s ability to detect and respond to changes (stimuli).
E.g. (internal stimuli)decrease in body temperature means there is
a change in internal body environment. (external stimuli) turning
head towards the sound of a music is a response to changes in the
external environment.
•Different cells in the body respond to external stimuli in
different way. E.g. nerve cell generate nerve impulses while
muscle cell contracts when stimulated.
 Characteristics of living organism

3. Movement
Includes movement of whole body, individual organs, single cells
and even structures within cells
E.g. coordinated action of leg muscles moves whole body from
one place to another.
E.g. after eating a meal, there is more contractions in the
stomach when food eventually empties into the organ.
 Skeletal muscle - locomotion

Smooth muscle - propulsion

 Characteristics of living organism

4. Growth
i.e. Is an increase in body size that results rom an increase in size
of existing cells, an increase in number of cells or both.
Tissue sometimes increase in size because of increase in amount
of material between cells.
(E.g. growing bone, has more increased mineral deposits between
cells causing the bone to increase in size and width)
 Characteristics of living organism

5. Differentiation
i.e. is the development of a cell from an unspecialized to a
specialized state.
e.g. red blood cells, and several white blood cells all arise from a
common unspecialized precursor cells (stem cells) in red bone
marrow.
 Characteristics of living organism

6. Reproduction
Refers to the formation of new cells for tissue growth, repair, or
replacement (mitosis) or the production of new individual
(meiosis, fertilization)
Also refers to fertilization of an ovum by a sperm.
•When these 6 basic processes cease to occur properly, the cells
and tissues die, and may even lead to death of an organism
E.g. clinically absence of heart beat, absence of spontaneous
breathing and loos of brain function shows death in the human
body
 Readings.
1.Stuart Fox, Human physiology, 14th edition. Chapter 1 and
chapter 2.
2.Tortora and Derrickson. Principles of anatomy and physiology.
14th Edition. pages 1 – 8