Anatomy and Physiology
What this section tests
Questions test structural organization, homeostasis, directional terminology, the four tissue types, and the major body systems with their organ functions.
Must-know content
- Organization: cell, tissue, organ, organ system, organism.
- Tissues: epithelial (covering), connective (support), muscle (movement), nervous (signaling).
- Directional terms: superior/inferior, anterior/posterior, medial/lateral, proximal/distal, superficial/deep.
- Blood flow: right atrium → right ventricle → pulmonary artery → lungs → left atrium → left ventricle → aorta → body. The pulmonary artery is the exception: it carries deoxygenated blood.
- Urinary system: the nephron filters blood in the kidney; tubules reabsorb water and nutrients.
- Respiratory system: gas exchange occurs across the alveoli; oxygen enters blood, carbon dioxide leaves.
- Digestive system: most nutrient absorption happens in the small intestine through villi; the liver produces bile, the gallbladder stores it.
- Endocrine system: insulin from pancreatic beta cells lowers blood glucose; glucagon raises it.
- Nervous system: neurons carry electrical impulses; the synapse uses neurotransmitters.
Traps to expect
- Afferent vs. efferent: afferent arrives (sensory toward the brain); efferent exits (motor away).
- Calling the pulmonary artery oxygen-rich, or the pulmonary vein oxygen-poor.
- Confusing bile production (liver) with bile storage (gallbladder).
- Mixing up the roles of the small and large intestine.
Rule of thumb
Trace structures in the order material actually flows, and name the organ that performs the function rather than the one that stores or transports it.
Worked example
Trace a drop of blood from the body: vena cava → right atrium → right ventricle → pulmonary artery → lungs (picks up oxygen) → pulmonary vein → left atrium → left ventricle → aorta → body tissues.