Trigger Questions:

1. What is anatomy?
2. What is physiology?
3. In what ways are they related and different?
4. How would you describe the human body?
5. How do you think is the human body
organized?
6. In your own words, how do you think the
human body sustains life?
7. What are needed by the body to sustain life?
The Human Body: An Orientation

Week 1 Topic
MC102 – ANATOMY and PHYSIOLOGY
February 10 – 14, 2020

St. Paul University Philippines - College of Nursing School of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences 2nd Semester 2019-2020
Objectives:
• At the end of 3 hours, the students will be able to:
▫ define anatomy and physiology
▫ describe the relationship between anatomy and
physiology
▫ explain the structural organization of the human
body
▫ discuss the characteristics of life
▫ relate the characteristics of life to the survival
needs of the body
▫ discuss homeostasis
▫ discuss the importance of studying anatomy and
physiology in nursing
• Anatomy: studies the structure of body parts
and their relationship to one another

• Physiology: the function of the body parts

• Complementarity of Structure & Function

▫ What a structure can do depends on its specific
form
▫ “Structure dictates function”
Subdivisions of Anatomy
• Gross or Macroscopic
▫ parts visible to naked eye
▫ eg. regional, surface, systemic
• Microscopic
▫ Cytology: study of cells
▫ Histology: study of tissues
• Developmental
eg. embryology – study changes that occur before
birth
Physiology
• Focuses on events at cellular or molecular level
• Chemical & physical principles

LEVELS
▫ Cell physiology examines the processes occurring in cells
▫ Systemic physiology considers the functions of organ
systems.
▫ Neurophysiology focuses on the nervous system
▫ Cardiovascular physiology deals with the heart and blood
vessels.
▫ Exercisephysiology focuses on the changes in function and
structure caused by exercise.
 Relationship between Anatomy and
Physiology
• Anatomy and Physiology are always related .

• Structure determines what functions can take

place.

• Example: The lungs are not muscular chambers

like the heart and can not pump blood, but
because the walls of lungs are very thin, they
can exchange gasses and provide oxygen to the
body.
Levels of Structural Organization
• chemical  cellular  tissue  organ  organ system
 organism
Levels of Structural Organization
• Chemical level. The chemical level involves
interactions between atoms, which are tiny
building blocks of matter.
Atoms combine to form molecules, such as
water, sugar, fats, and proteins.

• Cell level. Cells are the basic structural and

functional units of plants and animals. Molecules
combine to form organelles(or′gă-nelz; little
organs), which are the small structures that make
up cells
• Tissue level. A tissue is composed of a group
of similar cells and the materials surrounding
them. The characteristics of the cells and
surrounding materials determine the functions of
the tissue.
• Organ level. An organ is composed of two or
more tissue types that perform one or more
common functions.
• Organ system level. An organ system is a
group of organs that together perform a
common function or set of functions and are
therefore viewed as a unit.
• Organism level. An organism is any living
thing considered as a whole - whether
composed of one cell, such as a bacterium or of
trillions of cells, such as a human.
Overview of Organ Systems
Overview of Organ Systems
Overview of Organ Systems
Overview of Organ Systems
Overview of Organ Systems
Overview of Organ Systems
 Characteristics of Life
1. Organization refers to the specific
interrelationships among the parts of an
organism and how those parts interact to
perform specific functions.

2. Metabolism (mĕ-tab′ō-lizm) refers to all of the

chemical reactions taking place in an organism.

3. Responsiveness is an organism’s ability to

sense changes in its external or internal
environment and adjust to those changes.
4. Growth refers to an increase in the size or
number of cells, which produces an overall
enlargement of all or part of an organism.

5. Development includes the changes an

organism undergoes through time, beginning with
fertilization and ending at death.

6. Reproduction is the formation of new cells or

new organisms.
 Survival Needs (to sustain life)
• Nutrients

• Oxygen

• Water

• Normal Body Temperature (98.6F or 37C)

• Atmospheric Pressure
 HOMEOSTASIS
• Maintenance of relatively stable internal
conditions

• Negative (-) feedback: reduces effect of stimulus

▫ Eg. body temp, breathing rate, blood sugar levels

• Positive (+) feedback: increases response

▫ Eg. labor contractions, blood clotting
• Diseases = homeostatic imbalance
 NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
• Most systems of the body are regulated by
negative-feedback mechanisms, which
maintain homeostasis (EQUILIBRIUM)

• Negative means that any deviation from the set

point is made smaller or is resisted

• Often it causes the output of a system to be

lessened so that the feedback will stabilize
the system
 3 COMPONENTS OF NEGATIVE
FEEDBACK MECHANISM
• (1) a receptor, which monitors the value of a
variable;

• (2) a control center, which receives

information about the variable from the
receptor, establishes the set point, and controls
the effector;

• (3) an effector, which produces responses that

change the value of the variable.
 POSITIVE FEEDBACK

• Positive-feedback mechanisms occur

when a response to the original
stimulus results in the deviation from
the set point becoming even greater.

• At times, this type of response is required

to re-achieve homeostasis.
Post-discussion questions:
• What insights have you learned from the
discussion today?
• Do you think the body can function without a
particular organ system? Why or why not?
• Do you think human beings care enough to help
the body maintain homeostasis all the
time? Why or why not?
• What do you think is the importance of studying
anatomy and physiology in nursing?