Anatomy is the study of the structure of plants and animals, including visible structures, growth and development, and body systems. It includes gross anatomy, histology, and subdivisions such as comparative and pathological anatomy. Anatomy is related to physiology, which deals with the function of organisms.
Anatomy is the area of biology that deals with the structure of plants and animals, usually at the scale of entire organisms and their major systems. The major divisions that come under the scope of anatomy include the visible structures and organs, the comparative study of related organisms, and growth and development. Body systems and their functions and anatomical disease states are also part of anatomy. Sometimes histology is included, which is the study of different types of tissues and their special cells. In animals, the field also affects major systems such as the circulatory, digestive, and nervous systems.
Most commonly, the science of anatomy refers to the study of gross anatomy, which is the study of visible structures without the use of aids such as the microscope. This allows for the examination of various body structures in terms of their overall size and shape, as well as their relationship to other structures. Less commonly, the term also refers to the anatomical study of smaller units such as the cell. Studying various tissue types often requires microscopic analysis to make meaningful comparisons between them. The more inclusive term morphology covers both macroscopic, or large-scale, and microscopic structures.
Anatomy has a number of subdivisions that deal with more specific aspects of body structures. One of these is the study of the development of organisms, which in animals can include the embryonic stage up to maturity. Functional anatomy is the study of organs, their roles in the body, and their location in major body systems. Comparative anatomy deals with the anatomical relationship between animals that share similar structures, such as mammals.
Other subdivisions include pathological anatomy, which is the study of diseased organs and how they are changed in form or function. Sometimes the microscopic structures of the smallest biological unit, the cell, are also included. Broader divisions that have longer scientific histories include the animal, plant, and human branches of the field.
In anatomy, the visible structures of the body are related to their places in larger systems. For example, the circulatory system includes the heart, blood vessels and arteries. Male and female reproductive anatomy includes sex organs such as testicles, penis, and vagina. Other systems are the muscular, skeletal and respiratory systems. Anatomical studies are often associated with the related field of physiology, which deals more specifically with the function of organisms. Physiology also extends the study of anatomical structures to their biological processes.
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