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| The science of the structure of living organisms |
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| The branch of biology that deals with the normal functions of living organisms and their parts |
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| The smallest particle of a substance that retains the chemical and physical properties of the substance and is composed of two or more atoms |
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| The structural, functional and biological unit of all organisms |
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| An aggregate of cells in an organism that have similar structure and function |
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| A group of tissues that perform a specific function or group of functions |
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| A group of organs that work together to carry out a particular task |
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| The chamber of the human body (and other animal bodies) that is protected by the thoracic wall (thoracic cage and associated skin, muscle, and fascia |
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| The cavity within the abdomen, the space between the abdominal wall and the spine |
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| The space bounded by the bones of the pelvis and containing the pelvic viscera |
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| Any of the group of organic compunds consisting of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, usually in the ratio of 1:2:1, hence the general formula: Cn (H2O) n. |
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| The simplest form of carbohydrate; therefore, it cannot be broken down to simpler sugars by hydrolysis |
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| A carbohydrate whose molecules consist of a number of sugar molecules bonded together |
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| Any of a class of sugars whose molecules contain two monosaccharide residues |
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| A molecule composed of polymers of amino acids joined together by peptide bonds. It can be distinguished from fats and carbohydrates by containing nitrogen. Other components include carbon, hydrogen, oxygen,sulphur, and sometimes phosphorus |
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| The building block of protein in which each is coded for by a codon and linked together through peptide bonds |
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| A fatty or waxy organic compound that is readily soluble in nonpolar solvent (e.g. ether) but not in polar solvent (e.g water). Its major biological functions involve energy storage, structural component of cell membrane, and cell signaling |
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| An energy-rich compound made up of a single molecule of glycerol and three molecules of fatty acid, and serves as a major component of animal and plant oils and fats |
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A lipid with one or more phosphate groups attached to it.
A lipid consisting of a glycerol bound to two fatty acids and a phosphate group |
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| Any of a group of lipids with a specific 7-carbon-atom ring system as a nucleus, such as progesterone, adrenocortical and gonadal hormones |
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| The tendency toward a relatively stable equilibrium between interdependent elements, esp. as maintained by physiological processes |
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| The body cavity situated near the back of the human body, and includes the cranial cavity and vertebral cavity |
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| The body cavity situated near the front of the human body, and consists of the thoracic cavity and abdominopelvic cavity |
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| The cell’s outer membrane made up of a two layers of phospholipids with embedded proteins. It separates the contents of the cell from its outside environment, and it regulates what enters and exits the cell |
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| A protein molecule (or assembly of proteins) that is permanently attached or firmly anchored in the plasma membrane via its hydrophobic domains interacting with the membrane phospholipids |
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| A protein that temporarily adheres to the biological membrane, either to the lipid bilayer or to integral proteins by a combination of hydrophobic, electrostatic, and other non-covalent interactions |
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| An organelle found in large numbers in most cells, in which the biochemical processes of respiration and energy production occur |
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| A complex of vesicles and folded membranes within the cytoplasm of most eukaryotic cells, involved in secretion and intracellular transport |
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| A minute particle consisting of RNA and associated proteins, found in large numbers in the cytoplasm of living cells |
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| The central and most important part of an object, movement, or group, forming the basis for its activity and growth. |
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| A membrane-bounded organelle that occurs as labyrinthine, interconnected flattened sacs or tubules that is connected to the nuclear membrane, runs through the cytoplasm, and may well extend into the cell membrane |
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| A self-replicating material present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent of chromosomes |
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| A nucleic acid that is generally single stranded (double stranded in some viruses) and plays a role in transferring information from DNA to protein-forming system of the cell |
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| It is the process of transcribing or making a copy of genetic information stored in a DNA strand into a complementary strand of RNA (messenger RNA or mRNA) with the aid of RNA polymerases |
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| A step in protein biosynthesis wherein the genetic code carried by mRNA is decoded to produce the specific sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide chain. The process follows transcription in which the DNA sequence is copied (or transcribed) into an mRNA |
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| A series of metabolic processes that take place within a cell in which biochemical energy is harvested from organic substance (e.g. glucose) and stored as energy carriers (ATP) for use in energy-requiring activities of the cells |
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| Of, pertaining to, having, or requiring the presence of air or free oxygen |
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| Not requiring, or capable of occurring, in the absence of air or free oxygen |
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| Its functions are for intracellular energy transport for various metabolic processes including biosynthetic reactions, motility, and cell division. It is also used as a substrate by kinases that phosphorylate proteins and lipids, and by adenylate cyclase to produce cAMP |
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a nucleotide essential in psotosynthesis and glycolosis
The product of ATP de-phosphorylation via ATPases to release energy; and can be converted to ATP by phosphorylation (addition of phosphate and energy) via ATP synthases to store energy |
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| liquid contained inside the cell membranes (usually containing dissolved solutes) |
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| The body fluid outside the cell composed of blood plasma, interstitial fluid, lymph and transcellular fluid. |
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| A hydrostatic pressure caused by a difference in the amounts of solutes between solution that are separated by a semi-permeable membrane |
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| A solution that has higher osmotic pressure (or has more solutes) than another solution to which it is compared |
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| Any solution which has a lower pressure than another solution (that is, has a lower concentration of solutes than another solution) |
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| A solution that has the same salt concentration as cells and blood. Isotonic solutions are commonly used as intravenously infused fluids in hospitalized patients |
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| The passive movement of molecules or particles along a concentration gradient, or from regions of higher to regions of lower concentration |
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| Diffusion of fluid through a semipermeable membrane from a solution with a low solute concentration to a solution with a higher solute concentration until there is an equal concentration of fluid on both sides of the membrane |
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| The number of osmoles of solute per liter (L) of solution. It is expressed in terms of osmol/L or Osm/L |
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| The number of osmoles of solute per kilogram of solvent. It is expressed in terms of osmol/kg or Osm/kg |
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| A kind of transport wherein ions or molecules move against a concentration gradient, which means movement in the direction opposite that of diffusion – or – movement from an area of lower concentration to an area of higher concentration. Hence, this process will require expenditure of energy, and the assistance of a type of protein called a carrier protein |
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| A process in which cell takes in materials from the outside by engulfing and fusing them with its plasma membrane |
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| The process in which the cell releases materials to the outside by discharging them as membrane-bounded vesicles passing through the cell membrane |
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| Includes the 12 cranial, the spinal nerves and roots, and what are called the autonomic nerves that are concerned specifically with the regulation of the heart muscle, the muscles in blood vessel walls, and glands |
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| One of the whitish and elastic bundles of fibers, with the accompanying tissues, which transmit nervous impulses between nerve centers and various parts of the animal body |
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| An excitable cell specialised for the transmission of electrical signals over long distances |
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| A neuron conducting impulses inwards to the brain or spinal cord |
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| A nerve cell forming part of a pathway along which impulses pass from the brain or spinal cord to a muscle or gland |
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| A neuron that transmits impulses between other neurons, esp. as part of a reflex arc |
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| Conducting or conducted inward or toward something (for nerves, the central nervous system; for blood vessels, the organ supplied) |
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| Conducted or conducting outward or away from something (for nerves, the central nervous system; for blood vessels, the organ supplied) |
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| Relating to the body wall (as opposed to the viscera, head, or limbs) |
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| Involuntary or unconscious; relating to the autonomic nervous system |
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| A part of the nervous system that regulates key involuntary functions of the body, including the activity of the heart muscle; the smooth muscles, including the muscles of the intestinal tract; and the glands |
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| A molecule, chemical, or structure that regulates a pathway by increasing or decreasing the pathway's reaction rate. An organ (a gland or muscle) that becomes active in response to nerve impulses.A nerve fiber that terminates on a muscle or gland and stimulates contraction or secretion. Actions carried out by nervous impulses and hormones that are activated by receptors |
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| Used in reference to neurons, the main part of the cell around the nucleus excluding long processes such as axons and dendrites |
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| on of the threadlike extensions of the cytoplasm of a neuron. In unipolar and bipolar neurons, they resemble axons structurally, but typically, as in multipolar neurons, they branch into treelike processes |
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| A long processes of a neurons, that carries efferent (outgoing) action potential from the cell body towards target cells |
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| A substance comprised mainly of fatty materials (about 80%) and proteins (about 20%), and forms the myelin sheath that surrounds the axons of some nerve cells |
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| The somewhat enlarged, often club-shaped endings by which axons make synaptic contacts with other nerve cells or with effector cells |
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| The property of a cell that enables it to react to irritation or stimulation, such as the ability of a nerve or muscle cell to react to an electric stimulus |
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| Resting Membrane Potential |
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| The electrical potential of the inside of a cell, relative to its surroundings. Almost all animal cells are negative inside |
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| Voltage Gated Ion Channels |
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| A transmembrane ion channel whose permeability to ions is extremely sensitive to the transmembrane potential difference. These channels are essential for neuronal signal transmission and for intracellular signal transduction |
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| The critical level to which the membrane potential must be depolarised in order to initiate an action potential |
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| A short-term change in the electrical potential on the surface of a cell (e.g. a nerve cell or muscle cell) in response to stimulation, and then leads to the transmission of an electrical impulse (nerve impulse) that travels across the cell membrane |
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| A single nerve cell, just like a single muscle fibre, transmits an action potential according to the all-or-none-principle. The principle states that if a stimulus is strong enough to generate a nerve action potential, the impulse is conducted along the entire neuron at maximum strength, unless conduction is altered by conditions such as toxic materials in cells or fatigue |
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| The reduction of a membrane potential to a less negative value. It is caused by the influx of cations, such as sodium and calcium, through ion channels in the membrane. In many neurons and muscle cells, depolarization may lead to an electric impulse called an action potential |
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| The process by which the membrane potential of a neuron or muscle cell is restored to the cell's resting potential. In a cardiac muscle cell, the repolarization process begins after phase 0 of the action potential and is completed by the end of phase 3. It encompasses the effective and relative refractory periods and correlates with the Q-T interval on the electrocardiogram |
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| Any increase in the amount of electrical charge separated by the cell membrane and hence in the strength of the membrane potential. In cardiology this is the process by which an electrical fiber, at the end of phase 3 repolarisation, becomes more negative than usual |
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| The junction between neurons such that the nerve impulse is transmitted from a neuron to another neuron or to a muscle cell or gland cell |
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| The gap junction between two apposed neurons that allows faster nerve transmission |
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| A chemical that is released from a nerve cell which thereby transmits an impulse from a nerve cell to another nerve, muscle, organ, or other tissue. A neurotransmitter is a messenger of neurologic information from one cell to another |
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| A neuron from the axon terminal of which an electrical impulse is transmitted across a synaptic cleft to the cell body or one or more dendrites of a postsynaptic neuron by the release of a chemical neurotransmitter |
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| A neuron to the cell body or dendrite of which an electrical impulse is transmitted across a synaptic cleft by the release of a chemical neurotransmitter from the axon terminal of a presynaptic neuron |
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| A reflected action or movement, the sum total of any particular involuntary activity. An automatic instinctive unlearned reaction to a stimulus |
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| Specialized afferent neurons capable of transducing sensory stimuli into nerve impulses to be transmitted to the CNS. Sometimes sensory receptors for external stimuli are called exteroceptors; for internal stimuli are called interoceptors and proprioceptors |
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| Sympathetic Nervous System |
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| A part of the nervous system that serves to accelerate the heart rate, constrict blood vessels, and raise blood pressure |
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| Parasympathetic Nervous System |
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| The part of the involuntary nervous system that serves to slow the heart rate, increase intestinal and glandular activity, and relax the sphincter muscles |
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| Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Nervous Systems |
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| Together make up the autonomic nervous system |
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| part of the peripheral nervous system that is responsible for carrying motor and sensory information both to and from the central nervous system. This system is made up of nerves that connect to the skin, sensory organs and all skeletal muscles. The system is responsible for nearly all voluntary muscle movements as well as for processing sensory information that arrives via external stimuli including hearing, touch and sight. Read more about somatic nervous system |
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| A chemical substance produced in the body that controls and regulates the activity of certain cells or organs |
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| It is a self-regulatory system in which it feeds back to the input a part of a system’s output so as to reverse the direction of change of the output |
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| In this system, the original perturbation signal is amplified, and the output can grow exponentially or even hyperbolically |
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| A tissue or organ that is affected by a specific hormone |
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| The part of the brain that lies below the thalamus, forming the major portion of the ventral region of the diencephalon, and that regulates bodily temperature, certain metabolic processes, and other autonomic activities |
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| The front portion of the pituitary, a small gland in the head called the master gland. Hormones secreted by the anterior pituitary influence growth, sexual development, skin pigmentation, thyroid function, and adrenocortical function. These influences are exerted through the effects of pituitary hormones on other endocrine glands except for growth hormone which acts directly on cells |
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| Posterior Pituitary Gland |
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| T he back portion of the pituitary. It secretes the hormone oxytocin which increases uterine contractions and antidiuretic hormone (ADH) which increases reabsorption of water by the tubules of the kidney. Underproduction of ADH results in a disorder called diabetes inspidous characterized by inability to concentrate the urine and, consequently, excess urination leading potentially to dehydration. The urine is "insipid" (overly dilute) |
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| Thyroid Releasing Hormone (TRH) |
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| a tripeptide hormone of the hypothalamus, which stimulates release of thyrotropin from the adenohypohysis and also acts as a prolactin-releasing factor. It is used in diagnosis of mild hyperthyroidism and Grave’s disease, and in differentiating among primary, secondary, and tertiary hypothyroidism. A synthetic preparation is called protirelin |
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| Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) (Thyrotropin) |
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| A hormone produced by the pituitary gland at the base of the brain in response to signals from the hypothalamus gland in the brain. It promotes the growth of the thyroid gland in the neck and stimulates it to produce more thyroid hormones. When there is an excessive amount of thyroid hormones, the pituitary gland stops producing it, reducing thyroid hormone production. This mechanism maintains a relatively constant level of thyroid hormones circulating in the blood. |
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| A gland that makes and stores hormones that help regulate the heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and the rate at which food is converted into energy |
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| Together are considered thyroid hormone. Thyroid hormone affects heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Are stored as thyroglobulin, which can be converted back |
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| T4) an iodine-containing hormone secreted by the thyroid gland, occurring naturally as l-thyroxine; its chief function is to increase the rate of cell metabolism. It is deiodinated in peripheral tissues to form triiodonthyronine, which has greater biological activity |
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