What is Physiology?
Physiology is the science of life.
The word physiology comes from Ancient Greek.
The (Physio-) part means nature.
The (-logy) part means the study of.
So physiology is the study of nature, or how nature functions in living organisms.
The first person to introduce the term “Physiology” to describe the study of the body’s function was the French physician Jean François Fernel.
Physiology can be divided into a number of fields including:
- Human Physiology
- Animal Physiology
- Plant Physiology
- Cell Physiology
- Comparative Physiology
Physiology is closely related to Anatomy, which is the study of the structure of organisms.
To understand the difference between anatomy and physiology, let’s look at how each of them describe the skull.
According to anatomy, the skull is composed of a number of bones (structure).
According to physiology, the skull encloses and protects the brain (function).
Introduction to Physiology
Homeostasis and Feedback Systems
The Cell
Tissues
The Integumentary System
The Skeletal System
The Muscular System
The Nervous System
The Endocrine System
The Cardiovascular System
The Respiratory System
You Can Do It! 