Homeostasis & human body systems notes
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22 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Homeostasis | process by which organisms maintain a relatively stable internal environment |
| Feedback inhibitation | process by which the product of a system shuts down the system or limits its operation |
| Neuron | cell that carries messages throughout the nervous system |
| Threshold | minimum level of a stimulus required to activate a neuron |
| Synapse | location at which a neuron can transfer an impulse to another cell |
| Neurotransmitter | chemical used by a neuron to transmit an impulse across a synapse to another cell |
| Central Nervous System | The brain and spinal cord |
| Reflex | quick automatic response to a stimulus |
| Sensory Receptor | neuron that reacts to a specific stimulus, such as light or sound, by sending impulses to other neurons and eventually to the central nervous system |
| Drug | any substance, other than food, that causes a change in the structure or function of the body |
| Ossification | process of bone formation, during which cartilage is replaced by bone |
| Pulmonary Circulation | pathway in which the right side of the heart pumps blood to the lungs |
| Systemic Circulation | pathway in which the left side of the heart pumps blood to all of the body except the lungs |
| Calorie | term used by scientists to measure the energy stored in foods; 1000 calories |
| Peristalis | rhythemic muscular contractions that squeeze food through the esophagus into the stomach |
| Filtration | process by which fluid from the blood filters into Bowman's Capsule |
| Reabsorption | process by which most of the material removed from the blood at Bowman's capsule makes its way back into the blood |
| Hormone | substance produced in one part of an organism that affects another part of the same organism |
| Target cell | cell affected by a particular hormone |
| Endocrine gland | gland that releases its secretions directly into the bloodstream |
| Exocrine gland | gland that releases its secretions through tubelike structures called ducts |
| Diabetes mellitus | condition that occurs when the pancreas produces too little insulin, resulting in an increase in the level of glucose in the blood |
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