Physiology Group Review
1. How do the organization of cells, tissues and organs determine the structure and function in plant and
animal systems?
2. Describe the difference between peptide and lipid hormone cell communication.
3. What are the structures of a neuron?
4. Describe the process of neural communication between neuron to neuron and neuron to muscle.
5. How is does an impulse travel down a neuron?
6. How is a stimulus stimulatory or inhibitory? What does this mean?
7. Contrast the mechanisms of negative and positive feedback.
8. Give several examples of negative and positive feedback loops.
9. Describe the mechanism of human blood osmolarity regulation.
10. Describe the mechanism of human blood sugar regulation.
11. Describe how invertebrates and vertebrates regulate body temperature.
12. Describe how metabolism is regulated in the human body.
13. How does innate immunity protect the body?
14. How does specific immunity protect the body (B and T cells)?
15. How does is the first exposure to a pathogen different from the second exposure?
16. How does an allergic response work?
17. How do plants and other invertebrates show non-specific defenses?
18. Describe how hormones are involved with phototropism or photoperiodism.
19. Describe a countercurrent exchange system & explain its adaptive advantage.
20. Describe an adaptation that increases surface area in an animal system. Explain how this improves the
function of that system.
21. What adaptive features have contributed to the success of various plants and animals on land?
22. How do homeostatic mechanisms relate to evolution?
23. How do organisms use environmental cues to regulate internal mechanisms? (migrations, circadian
rhythms)
24. How are methods of digestion and excretion different in different organisms? (gas exchange in aquatic
vs. terrestrial animals; nitrogenous waste production in aquatic vs. terrestrial animals; unicellular vs.
multicellular)
25. What adaptive modifications might be useful for the digestive system of an animal living on a diet that
is mainly:
a. animal
b. grass
c. seeds
26. Organisms can have circulatory systems that are classified as single circulation or double circulation
paths. Fish have single circulation while human beings have double circulation.
a. Discuss the differences between single circulation and double circulation.
b. Does an organism with single circulation have a higher or lower metabolic rate when compared
to an organism with double circulation?
27. Explain how organs interact and coordinate with each other. (stomach and small intestine; kidney and
bladder; root, leaf and stem)
28. Several different examples of respiratory surfaces can be found in the animal kingdom.
a. What advantage does a large surface area in the alveoli have for animals that use lungs?
b. Why is it advantageous for an insect to rely on tracheal systems for delivery of oxygen to
individual cells, rather than their circulatory system?
29. Hemoglobin is a protein that binds oxygen for efficient delivery in many animals. Hemoglobin is made
up of four subunits. Each subunit contains a heme group that binds to one oxygen molecule. The
diagram below represents the binding efficiency of human adult during exercise.
30. How many oxygen molecules does human adult hemoglobin carry at normal pH at a PO2 of 60 mm Hg?
31. Where would you expect to find the partial pressure of oxygen to be lowest?
a) In the air outside the mouth
c) In the trachea
b) In the lungs
d) In the blood stream next to the alveoli
32. If the curve shifts to the right- can the hemoglobin hold more or less oxygen?
33. Why does the pH decrease (more acidic) after exercise?
34. Describe the steps of normal zygote development.
35. How do transcription factors play a role in development?
36. How can microRNA’s affect development?