Integrated Systems and Development

This unit explores organ systems from the cellular level through whole-body interactions, emphasizing structure-function relationships in the nervous, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, lymphatic, endocrine, urinary, digestive, and integumentary systems, plus embryology and fetal development. It builds on foundational cell and tissue concepts and prepares students to apply system-level knowledge to clinical scenarios in the final unit.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze structural and functional relationships of major body systems (skeletal, muscular, nervous, cardiovascular, lymphatic, endocrine, urinary, digestive, and integumentary) by identifying key components and explaining how they interact to maintain physiological function
• Apply cellular and molecular principles—including organelle functions, protein synthesis, and digestive enzyme activity—to interpret tissue roles and predict how cellular changes affect organ system performance
• Demonstrate mechanisms of homeostasis, stress response, and immune/lymphatic defense by describing feedback loops, immune responses to pathogens, and consequences of system dysregulation
• Evaluate stages of human development from embryology through birth and use Greek and Latin medical roots to accurately interpret and communicate anatomical and clinical terminology