FINAL EXAM STUDY GUIDE - PHYSIOLOGY CONCEPTS AND
FUNCTIONS NOTES
1. What are the physiological concepts of the fight-or-flight response?
a. During the alarm stage of the GAS, the SNS is stimulated and causes the release of
catecholamines and cortisol. Epinephrine and norepinephrine mediate the fight-or-
flight response.
b. Physiologically: pupils dilate // glands reduce secretion // heart rate increases //
adrenaline is secreted // decreased motility in intestine // excretion of waste
delayed
2. Define homeostasis.
a. Equilibrium, balance, consistency, stability
b. A self-regulating, give-and-take system that responds to minor changes in the body
through compensation mechanisms that attempt to counteract changes and return the
body to its normal state
3. What is the function of ribosomes?
a. Aid in protein production in the RER and form polysomes
4. What is the main function of the endocrine system?
a. Release hormones in the blood stream
5. What is the function of plasma proteins?
a. Globulins participate in the immune system and act as transport proteins
b. Albumins regulate osmotic pressure
c. Fibrinogens are involved in the clotting process
6. Intracellular fluid contains high levels of which electrolyte?
a. Potassium and magnesium
7. What is the physiologic effect of hyponatremia?
a. Anorexia // GI upset // poor skin turgor // dry mucous membranes // BP changes
(<hypovolemia,
>hypervolemia) // pulse changes (weak with hypovolemia, bounding with hypervolemia)
// edema // headache // lethargy // confusion // diminished deep tendon reflexes // muscle
weakness // seizures // coma
8. What is hypovolemia?
a. Decreased volume of circulating fluid in the body
9. What stores electrolytes and acts like an electrolyte pool in the body?
a. Bones, kidneys
10. What is the normal range of sodium?
a. 135-145 mEq/L
11. What are the clinical manifestations of fluid volume overload?
a. Hypervolemia // rapid weight gain // edema in the legs, arms, and face //
abdominal swelling // abdominal cramping // shortness of breath // HBP // CHF //
crackles // bounding pulses
12. What are the components of insensible water loss?
a. Breathing & talking, sweating, excretion through stool
13. Define hypotonic, hypertonic, and isotonic solutions.
a. Isotonic – concentration of solutes equal; no movement
b. Hypertonic – concentration of solutes higher in the solution than in the intravascular
compartment; fluid shifts out
c. Hypertonic – concentration of solutes lower in solution than in intravascular
compartment; fluid shifts in
14. What is osmosis?
a. The passive movement of water or another solvent across the cellular membrane
from an area of low solute concentration to an area of high solute concentration
15. What is the normal pH of blood?
, a. 7.35-7.45
16. What is
diffusion?
a. Movement of solutes from an area of higher concentration to an area of lower
concentration
17. An increase in sodium and osmolarity is associated with a deficiency in water.
18. How does the body maintain acid-base balance?
a. Bicarbonate-carbonic acid buffer system (lungs and kidneys)
b. Phosphate system – kidneys accept or donate hydrogen
c. Hemoglobin system – erythrocytes bind or release hydrogen and CO2
d. Protein system – proteins act as an acid or base by binding or releasing hydrogen
e. Respiratory regulation – manages pH by changing CO2 excretion
i. Speeding up respiration leads to excretion of more CO2 and less acidity,
slowing down is the opposite
ii. Maximum response 12-24 hours
f. Renal regulation – kidneys respond by changing the excretion or retention of hydrogen
or bicarb
i. Buffering effect reached in hours to days
19. What are the clinical manifestations of metabolic acidosis?
a. Headache // malaise // weakness // fatigue // lethargy // coma // warm, flushed skin //
N/V // anorexia // hypotension // dysrhythmias // shock // Kussmaul respiration (rapid,
deep) // hyperkalemia
20. What is sepsis?
a. Body’s overwhelming and life-threatening response to infection that can lead to tissue
damage, organ failure, and death
21. What are the steps of the inflammatory process?
a. Blood vessels dilate, bringing increased blood flow to the injured area
b. Fluid and phagocytic WBCs move out of capillaries
c. Lymphatic drainage removes dissolved poisonous substances
d. Phagocytes migrate to the injury site and ingest microbes and other foreign substances
e. Erythema // edema // heat // pain
22. Warmth and redness during a cellulitis infection is due to what?
a. Increased blood flow to the area
23. Fever is an indicator of homeostatic control in the body.
24. What is the role of histamine during allergic reactions? What is the outcome of histamine
release?
a. Released by mast cells and basophils triggering the inflammatory response, increasing
the permeability of capillaries to WBCs and other proteins. Boosts blood flow and
causes inflammation.
25. What systemic effects occur during an inflammatory response?
a. Elevated temperature
26. What are the clinical manifestations of anaphylaxis?
a. Itching, hives, and flushed or pale skin // hypotension // constriction of the airways and
a swollen tongue or throat // constriction of the bronchioles // dilation of peripheral
vessels // weak, rapid pulse
27. Which disorders are associated with an excessive immune response?
a. Asthma, Chron’s disease
28. What is passive immunity?
a. Immunity gained by receiving antibodies made outside the body by another
person, animal, or recombinant DNA. The person is not actively producing
antibodies and protection is short lived
b. Mother-to-fetus transfer of antibodies through the placenta and breastfeeding
29. Define autoimmune disease.
a. The body’s normal defenses become self-destructive.
, 30. What are monocytes, neutrophils, macrophages, and lymphocytes?
a. Monocytes – WBCs that replenish macrophages and dendritic cells in normal states
and respond to inflammation by migrating to infected tissue; their conversion elicits
an immune response
b. Neutrophils – infection fighting agents usually first to arrive on the scene. Escape from
the capillary wall and migrate to the site of infection to phagocytize microorganisms
c. Macrophages – WBCs within tissues that phagocytize and stimulate lymphocytes
and other immune cells to respond to pathogens
d. Lymphocytes – immune cells
i. B-cells mature in the bone marrow and differentiate into memory cells or
immunoglobulin-secreting cells. Eliminate bacteria, neutralize bacterial toxins,
prevent viral reinfection, produce immediate inflammatory response
ii. T-cells are produced in the bone marrow and mature in the thymus. Work to
destroy antigens or act as regulator or effector cells
31. What is leukocytosis?
a. Increase in WBCs indicating an active infectious process
32. What is active acquired immunity?
a. Immunity gained through direct contact with an antigen through invasion or
vaccination. The person makes their own antibodies and protection is usually long-
term
33. What is metastatic cancer?
a. Cancer that spreads from its site of origin to another part of the body
34. What is the goal of systemic cancer treatment?
a. Goal can be curative (eradicate cancer), palliative (increase comfort by treating
symptoms), or prophylactic (prevent cancer)
35. What are benign tumors?
a. Cells are differentiated and mitosis is fairly normal meaning growth is slow
b. Tumor is frequently encapsulated and remains localized
c. Systemic effects are rare and only life threatening in locations like the brain
36. What are malignant tumors?
a. Cells lack differentiation and mitosis is increased and atypical, contributing to rapid
growth
b. Cells are not adhesive and not encapsulated, allowing them to infiltrate other tissue
and metastasize to other sites through blood and lymph vessels
c. Systemic effects are common and malignant tumors are life threatening through spread
and destruction
37. Fatigue is an early common sign of cancer.
38. What are the steps of carcinogenesis?
a. Initiation, promotion, and progression
39. Define anaplasia.
a. Loss of differentiation of cells that occurs with cancer
40. What is the tumor grading of cells?
a. Degree of differentiation on a scale of 1 to 4. Grade 1 cancers are well differentiated
(less likely to cause problems) and grade 4 cancers are undifferentiated (high
probability for serious problems)
41. What is the TNM staging system?
a. Tumor, node, metastasis system that evaluates tumor size, nodal involvement, and
metastatic progress
b. T-primary tumor– information about the tumor size and location at time of diagnosis.
Small cancers that haven’t spread may be classified as stage I. Stage II cancers are
larger and have spread to surrounding tissue. T0-T4.
c. N-nodes – has the tumor spread to surrounding lymph nodes? N0 indicates no spread,
N1 is one group,
N2 is regional, N3 is systemic
FUNCTIONS NOTES
1. What are the physiological concepts of the fight-or-flight response?
a. During the alarm stage of the GAS, the SNS is stimulated and causes the release of
catecholamines and cortisol. Epinephrine and norepinephrine mediate the fight-or-
flight response.
b. Physiologically: pupils dilate // glands reduce secretion // heart rate increases //
adrenaline is secreted // decreased motility in intestine // excretion of waste
delayed
2. Define homeostasis.
a. Equilibrium, balance, consistency, stability
b. A self-regulating, give-and-take system that responds to minor changes in the body
through compensation mechanisms that attempt to counteract changes and return the
body to its normal state
3. What is the function of ribosomes?
a. Aid in protein production in the RER and form polysomes
4. What is the main function of the endocrine system?
a. Release hormones in the blood stream
5. What is the function of plasma proteins?
a. Globulins participate in the immune system and act as transport proteins
b. Albumins regulate osmotic pressure
c. Fibrinogens are involved in the clotting process
6. Intracellular fluid contains high levels of which electrolyte?
a. Potassium and magnesium
7. What is the physiologic effect of hyponatremia?
a. Anorexia // GI upset // poor skin turgor // dry mucous membranes // BP changes
(<hypovolemia,
>hypervolemia) // pulse changes (weak with hypovolemia, bounding with hypervolemia)
// edema // headache // lethargy // confusion // diminished deep tendon reflexes // muscle
weakness // seizures // coma
8. What is hypovolemia?
a. Decreased volume of circulating fluid in the body
9. What stores electrolytes and acts like an electrolyte pool in the body?
a. Bones, kidneys
10. What is the normal range of sodium?
a. 135-145 mEq/L
11. What are the clinical manifestations of fluid volume overload?
a. Hypervolemia // rapid weight gain // edema in the legs, arms, and face //
abdominal swelling // abdominal cramping // shortness of breath // HBP // CHF //
crackles // bounding pulses
12. What are the components of insensible water loss?
a. Breathing & talking, sweating, excretion through stool
13. Define hypotonic, hypertonic, and isotonic solutions.
a. Isotonic – concentration of solutes equal; no movement
b. Hypertonic – concentration of solutes higher in the solution than in the intravascular
compartment; fluid shifts out
c. Hypertonic – concentration of solutes lower in solution than in intravascular
compartment; fluid shifts in
14. What is osmosis?
a. The passive movement of water or another solvent across the cellular membrane
from an area of low solute concentration to an area of high solute concentration
15. What is the normal pH of blood?
, a. 7.35-7.45
16. What is
diffusion?
a. Movement of solutes from an area of higher concentration to an area of lower
concentration
17. An increase in sodium and osmolarity is associated with a deficiency in water.
18. How does the body maintain acid-base balance?
a. Bicarbonate-carbonic acid buffer system (lungs and kidneys)
b. Phosphate system – kidneys accept or donate hydrogen
c. Hemoglobin system – erythrocytes bind or release hydrogen and CO2
d. Protein system – proteins act as an acid or base by binding or releasing hydrogen
e. Respiratory regulation – manages pH by changing CO2 excretion
i. Speeding up respiration leads to excretion of more CO2 and less acidity,
slowing down is the opposite
ii. Maximum response 12-24 hours
f. Renal regulation – kidneys respond by changing the excretion or retention of hydrogen
or bicarb
i. Buffering effect reached in hours to days
19. What are the clinical manifestations of metabolic acidosis?
a. Headache // malaise // weakness // fatigue // lethargy // coma // warm, flushed skin //
N/V // anorexia // hypotension // dysrhythmias // shock // Kussmaul respiration (rapid,
deep) // hyperkalemia
20. What is sepsis?
a. Body’s overwhelming and life-threatening response to infection that can lead to tissue
damage, organ failure, and death
21. What are the steps of the inflammatory process?
a. Blood vessels dilate, bringing increased blood flow to the injured area
b. Fluid and phagocytic WBCs move out of capillaries
c. Lymphatic drainage removes dissolved poisonous substances
d. Phagocytes migrate to the injury site and ingest microbes and other foreign substances
e. Erythema // edema // heat // pain
22. Warmth and redness during a cellulitis infection is due to what?
a. Increased blood flow to the area
23. Fever is an indicator of homeostatic control in the body.
24. What is the role of histamine during allergic reactions? What is the outcome of histamine
release?
a. Released by mast cells and basophils triggering the inflammatory response, increasing
the permeability of capillaries to WBCs and other proteins. Boosts blood flow and
causes inflammation.
25. What systemic effects occur during an inflammatory response?
a. Elevated temperature
26. What are the clinical manifestations of anaphylaxis?
a. Itching, hives, and flushed or pale skin // hypotension // constriction of the airways and
a swollen tongue or throat // constriction of the bronchioles // dilation of peripheral
vessels // weak, rapid pulse
27. Which disorders are associated with an excessive immune response?
a. Asthma, Chron’s disease
28. What is passive immunity?
a. Immunity gained by receiving antibodies made outside the body by another
person, animal, or recombinant DNA. The person is not actively producing
antibodies and protection is short lived
b. Mother-to-fetus transfer of antibodies through the placenta and breastfeeding
29. Define autoimmune disease.
a. The body’s normal defenses become self-destructive.
, 30. What are monocytes, neutrophils, macrophages, and lymphocytes?
a. Monocytes – WBCs that replenish macrophages and dendritic cells in normal states
and respond to inflammation by migrating to infected tissue; their conversion elicits
an immune response
b. Neutrophils – infection fighting agents usually first to arrive on the scene. Escape from
the capillary wall and migrate to the site of infection to phagocytize microorganisms
c. Macrophages – WBCs within tissues that phagocytize and stimulate lymphocytes
and other immune cells to respond to pathogens
d. Lymphocytes – immune cells
i. B-cells mature in the bone marrow and differentiate into memory cells or
immunoglobulin-secreting cells. Eliminate bacteria, neutralize bacterial toxins,
prevent viral reinfection, produce immediate inflammatory response
ii. T-cells are produced in the bone marrow and mature in the thymus. Work to
destroy antigens or act as regulator or effector cells
31. What is leukocytosis?
a. Increase in WBCs indicating an active infectious process
32. What is active acquired immunity?
a. Immunity gained through direct contact with an antigen through invasion or
vaccination. The person makes their own antibodies and protection is usually long-
term
33. What is metastatic cancer?
a. Cancer that spreads from its site of origin to another part of the body
34. What is the goal of systemic cancer treatment?
a. Goal can be curative (eradicate cancer), palliative (increase comfort by treating
symptoms), or prophylactic (prevent cancer)
35. What are benign tumors?
a. Cells are differentiated and mitosis is fairly normal meaning growth is slow
b. Tumor is frequently encapsulated and remains localized
c. Systemic effects are rare and only life threatening in locations like the brain
36. What are malignant tumors?
a. Cells lack differentiation and mitosis is increased and atypical, contributing to rapid
growth
b. Cells are not adhesive and not encapsulated, allowing them to infiltrate other tissue
and metastasize to other sites through blood and lymph vessels
c. Systemic effects are common and malignant tumors are life threatening through spread
and destruction
37. Fatigue is an early common sign of cancer.
38. What are the steps of carcinogenesis?
a. Initiation, promotion, and progression
39. Define anaplasia.
a. Loss of differentiation of cells that occurs with cancer
40. What is the tumor grading of cells?
a. Degree of differentiation on a scale of 1 to 4. Grade 1 cancers are well differentiated
(less likely to cause problems) and grade 4 cancers are undifferentiated (high
probability for serious problems)
41. What is the TNM staging system?
a. Tumor, node, metastasis system that evaluates tumor size, nodal involvement, and
metastatic progress
b. T-primary tumor– information about the tumor size and location at time of diagnosis.
Small cancers that haven’t spread may be classified as stage I. Stage II cancers are
larger and have spread to surrounding tissue. T0-T4.
c. N-nodes – has the tumor spread to surrounding lymph nodes? N0 indicates no spread,
N1 is one group,
N2 is regional, N3 is systemic
