Janet Rae-Dupree

To successfully study anatomy and physiology, you'll want to understand all the Latin and Greek roots, prefixes and suffixes. Also, make sure to get a good foundational knowledge of anatomic cavities, anatomic positions (standard positions when looking at an anatomical drawing), and anatomic planes.Latin and Greek in anatomy and physiologyScience, especially medicine, is permeated with Latin and Greek terms.

Atoms tend to arrange themselves in the most stable patterns possible, which means that they have a tendency to complete or fill their outermost electron orbits. They join with other atoms to do just that. The force that holds atoms together in collections known as molecules is referred to as a chemical bond. There are two main types and some secondary types of chemical bonds:Ionic bondIonic bonding involves a transfer of an electron, so one atom gains an electron while one atom loses an electron.

With so many industrious components keeping you moving through your life, it can be startling to think about the number of body parts that, frankly, you just don’t need. The first ones that come to mind often are the appendix and the wisdom teeth. The appendix, which does produce a few white blood cells, generally gets to stay put so long as it doesn’t get infected.

It may look like cells are living out their useful lives simply doing whatever specialized jobs they do best, but in truth mitosis is a continuous process. When the cell isn’t actively splitting itself in two, it’s actively preparing to do so. DNA and centrioles (arrays of microtubules) are being replicated, and the cell is bulking up on cytoplasm to make sure there’s enough for both daughter cells.

Just as the Earth rotates around its axis, the axial skeleton lies along the midline, or center, of the body. Think of your spinal column and the bones that connect directly to it — the rib (thoracic) cage and the skull. The axial skeleton also consists of 33 bones in the vertebral column, laid out in four distinct curvatures, or areas.

Whereas the axial skeleton lies along the body’s central axis, the appendicular skeleton’s 126 bones include those in all four appendages — arms and legs — plus the two primary girdles to which the appendages attach: the pectoral (chest) girdle and the pelvic (hip) girdle. The pectoral girdle is made up of a pair of clavicles, or collarbones, which attach to the sternum medially and to the scapula laterally articulating with the acromion process, a bony prominence at the top of each of the pair of scapulae, better known as shoulder blades.

Arthrology, which stems from the ancient Greek word arthros (meaning “jointed”), is the study of those structures that hold bones together, allowing them to move to varying degrees — or fixing them in place — depending on the design and function of the joint. The term articulation, or joint, applies to any union of bones, whether it moves freely or not at all.

When you’re talking anatomy and physiology, the body is divided into sections, usually three planes. Separating the body into sections, or cuts, let’s you know which body half is being explained. The anatomic planes are: Frontal or coronal: Divides the body into front (anterior) and back (posterior) Sagit

Science, especially medicine, is permeated with Latin and Greek terms. Latin names are used for every part of the body; and since the Greeks are the founders of modern medicine, Greek terms are common in medical terminology, as well. Latin and Greek roots This table represents some common Latin and Greek root