Animal Anatomy and Physiology notes 

Anatomy:​ ​the branch of science concerned with the bodily structure of humans, animals and other living
organisms, especially as revealed by dissection and the separations of parts.
Physiology:​ ​the branch of biology that deals with the normal functions of living organisms and their parts.
Levels of organization:​ ​cells, tissues, organs, organ systems and organism.

In general, directional terms are grouped in pairs of opposites based on the standard anatomical position.
● Superior and Inferior​. Superior means above, inferior means below. The elbow is superior (above) to
the hand. The foot is inferior (below) to the knee.​ ​Superior view​: situated toward the head and further
away from the feet; the upper part of a structure.​ Inferior view​: Situated nearer to the feet than the
head; the lower part of a structure.

● Anterior and Posterior.​ Anterior means toward the front (chest side) of the body, posterior means
toward the back.

● Medial and Lateral.​ Medial means toward the midline of the body, lateral means away from the
midline. ​Ipsilateral​ means on the same side—the left arm is ipsilateral (on the same side) to the left leg.
 ● Proximal and Distal​. Proximal means closest to the point of origin or trunk of the body, distal means
farthest away. Proximal and distal are often used when describing arms and legs. If you were describing
the shin bone, the proximal end would be the end close to the knee and the distal end would be the end
close to the foot. In the fingers of the hand, a proximal joint is closest to the wrist and a distal joint is
farthest from the wrist.

● Superficial and Deep​. Superficial means toward the body surface, deep means farthest from the body
surface.

Other directional terms:

● Intermediate​ – means between—your heart is intermediate to your lungs.
● Caudal​ – at or near the tail or posterior end of the body.
● Visceral​ – may be used instead of deep.

There are also terms that describe specific body parts. Palmar describes the palm side of the hand. Dorsal
describes the back side of the hand. Plantar describes the bottom of the foot.

Anatomical Reference Planes

A plane is a two-dimensional surface — its dimensions are length and width. The body reference planes are
used to locate or describe the location of structures in the body. These terms are often used to describe medical
imaging such as CAT scans, PET scans and MRIs where the scans take pictures of the body in flat slices. Brain
scans are often of sagittal plane slices (from ear to ear). Abdominal CAT scans are often transverse plane slices
(like a stack of coins).
The three basic planes intersect at right angles to each other. When the three basic planes intersect in the center
of the body (as seen in the image to the right) they can be used to describe various relationships within the
body.

Main Reference Planes

● Sagittal plane (median, wheel)​ — this vertical (top to bottom) plane divides the body into left and right
sides; a plane that divides the body down the middle into equal left and right sides is the Median
Sagittal Plane. ​Sagittal plane​: divides a structure or the body vertically into right or left portions.

● Coronal (vertical, frontal, door) plane​ — a vertical plane that divides the body into front (anterior or
ventral) and back (posterior or dorsal) portions.

● Transverse (horizontal, table) plane — this horizontal plane is parallel to the ground and divides the
body into up (toward the head) and down (toward the feet) portions.

● Oblique plane is not shown; it is a slanted plane (at an angle) that lies between the horizontal and
vertical planes. ​Oblique plane: passes through a structure or the entire body at an angle.
Body Cavities

Body cavities are areas in the body that contain our internal organs. The dorsal and ventral cavities are the two
main cavities. The dorsal cavity is on the posterior (back side) of the body and contains the cranial cavity and
spinal cavity. In human anatomy, dorsal, caudal and posterior mean the same thing. The ventral cavity is on the
front (anterior) of the body and is divided into the thoracic cavity (chest) and abdominopelvic cavity.

Dorsal Cavity
The dorsal cavity is further divided into sub cavities:
● cranial cavity (also called the calvaria) which surrounds and holds the brain
● vertebral cavity (also called the spinal cavity) which includes the vertebrae (spinal column) and ​spinal
cord.

Ventral Cavity
The ventral cavity is on the front of the trunk. The diaphragm (the main muscle of breathing) divides the
ventral cavity into two simple sub cavities: thoracic and abdominal.
● thoracic cavity​ which is surrounded by the ribs and chest muscles is superior (above) to the diaphragm
and abdominopelvic cavity. It is further divided into the pleural cavities (left and right) which contain
the lungs, bronchi, and the mediastinum which contains the heart, pericardial membranes, large vessels
of the heart, trachea (windpipe), upper esophagus, thymus gland, lymph nodes, and other blood vessels
and nerves.
● abdominopelvic cavity​ is divided into the abdominal cavity and pelvic cavity. The abdominal cavity is
between the diaphragm and the pelvis. It is lined with a membrane and contains the stomach, lower part
of the esophagus, small and large intestines (except sigmoid and rectum), spleen, liver, gallbladder,
pancreas, adrenal glands,​ kidneys and ureters. The pelvic cavity contains the bladder, some
reproductive organs and the rectum.

The thoracic cavity is open at the top and the abdominal cavity is open at the bottom. Both cavities are bound
on the back by the spine. Even though their location is defined, the shape of these cavities can change. How
they change is very different. Breathing is the main way the shape of these two cavities changes. The
abdominal cavity​ ​changes​ shape similar to a water-filled balloon. When you squeeze the balloon, the shape
changes as the balloon bulges. When breathing compresses the abdominal cavity it “bulges” into a different
shape. The abdominal cavity can also change shape based on volume—that is how much you eat and drink.
The more you eat and drink, the harder it is for the diaphragm to compress the abdominal cavity—which is
why it is harder to breathe after a large meal. Also, an increase in volume of the abdominal cavity decreases the
volume in the thoracic cavity—you can take in less air. The ​thoracic cavity changes​ both shape and volume
when you breathe. When you breathe out, the volume decreases; when you breathe in the volume increases.
Because of how these two cavities are linked together in shape change, you can see that the quality of
breathing affects the health of abdominal organs and the health of our organs affects the quality of our
breathing.

Coelom importance: ​is the cavity in metazoans located between the intestinal canal and the body wall, it
can absorb, shock or provide a hydrostatic skeleton, also supports the immune system. It surrounds and
protects the digestive track and helps prevent injuries, transports waste, nutrients and gases between several
different body parts and organs.