1

CHAPTER

SECTION I CELLULAR & MOLECULAR

BASIS OF MEDICAL PHYSIOLOGY

1

General Principles &

Energy Production in

Medical Physiology

OBJECTIVES

After studying this chapter, you should be able to:

■

Name the different fluid compartments in the human body.

■

Define moles, equivalents, and osmoles.

■

Define pH and buffering.

■

Understand electrolytes and define diffusion, osmosis, and tonicity.

■

Define and explain the resting membrane potential.

■

Understand in general terms the basic building blocks of the cell: nucleotides,

amino acids, carbohydrates, and fatty acids.

■

Understand higher-order structures of the basic building blocks: DNA, RNA,

proteins, and lipids.

■

Understand the basic contributions of these building blocks to cell structure,

function, and energy balance.

INTRODUCTION

In unicellular organisms, all vital processes occur in a single

cell. As the evolution of multicellular organisms has progressed,

various cell groups organized into tissues and organs have

taken over particular functions. In humans and other verte-

brate animals, the specialized cell groups include a gastrointes-

tinal system to digest and absorb food; a respiratory system to

take up O
2
and eliminate CO
2
; a urinary system to remove

wastes; a cardiovascular system to distribute nutrients, O
2
, and

the products of metabolism; a reproductive system to perpetu-

ate the species; and nervous and endocrine systems to coordi-

nate and integrate the functions of the other systems. This book

is concerned with the way these systems function and the way

each contributes to the functions of the body as a whole.

In this section, general concepts and biophysical and bio-

chemical principles that are basic to the function of all the

systems are presented. In the first chapter, the focus is on

review of basic biophysical and biochemical principles and

the introduction of the molecular building blocks that con-

tribute to cellular physiology. In the second chapter, a review

of basic cellular morphology and physiology is presented. In

the third chapter, the process of immunity and inflammation,

and their link to physiology, are considered.