College of the Great Smoky Mountains - Southwestern Community College, serving Jackson, Macon,  and Swain Counties and Cherokee/ Qually Boundary
» Back to SCC Home
» Student Services Home    » Learning Assistance Center Home  » Learning Links
Learning Links - Anatomy & Physiology

 

INTRODUCTION

While there are many websites available on-line for the enhanced study of Anatomy and Physiology, often those vast choices of links are not appropriate to what we study here at SCC.  The following links, therefore, are an attempt to preview many of the available sites and to specifically recommend those that would directly tie into our community college courses of BIO 168, BIO 169, and BIO 163. By directly clicking on the links below, you will be directed to the specific animation or tutorial exercise.

NOTE

Loading animation viewers, such as Quick Time: Often, they are already installed on your computer, although you might have an earlier version. Typically, the website will ask if you want to download a recent version of the viewer, to which you can click okay, or install, as prompted. Still, some of these videos will take 20 or more seconds sometimes to reach your computer, but they are worth the “wait.” HOWEVER, if you are using an old modem-type, dial-up internet connection, your wait times will be much too slow and maddening. It is suggested that you access these animations only with a higher speed connection, using on-campus computers, for example.

If you have trouble viewing a selected video, try downloading the needed viewer software again onto your computer. Also, perhaps try using Internet Explorer as your browser, instead of Firefox for example, and see if that helps. Some sites seem to have some great animations, yet they seem to sometimes “balk” at loading. Some of you may be quite savvy about solving this sort of thing, unlike some of us “old folks.”

In any case, you can download Quicktime, Flash Player, Shockwave, etc., video players from here if your computer does not already have them installed.

Added Note: If your first click onto a desired link doesn’t succeed, then try again. Also try disabling your “pop up blocker” and see if that helps.

Anatomy I Topics, by chapter:
Introduction to A&P Integument System
Muscle Tissue
Peripheral Nervous System
Chemistry of Life Bone Tissue
Muscles of the Body Automomic Nervous System
Cells The Skeleton
Neural Tissue Neural Integration
Tissues Joint Articulations
Central Nervous System Sensory Perception

General Suggested A&P links:

The following site is published by the textbook publisher, Wiley, and has numerous illustrations of anatomical structures that allow interactions by the student, to self-check his/her knowledge. The topics listed there follow the same topics in your A&P textbook. Some students report using this site routinely in their A&P studies; give it a try.

McGraw Hill textbook publishers have a good site also for weekly review of A&P topics. It doesn’t involve animations, just photos and review texts. It is basic but helpful.

Interested in Pathologies of the body? Then, this Medline Plus site should be interesting.

This college has a Biology site that lists API and APII on the left side bar. You can select from tutorials or animations that send you to various links throughout the web.  Many of the following listed websites are culled from this site, although you might wish to explore it yourself. If you find other great sites, then let your A&P instructor know, so that they can share with other students.

INTRODUCTION to A&P:

The Scientific Method—a practical example

Surface terminology

Body Planes

Positional Terminology

Chemistry of Life:

Carbohydrates

Fatty Triglycerides

Lipids

Simple breakdown equation of glucose + oxygen into CO2 and H20 and energy

Nice visual explanation of the structure of various Fats

Monomer/Polymer Dehydration & Hydrolysis

CELLS: Another valuable educational site includes links for the following useful animations:

Cellular components review

Plasma Membrane components review

“Animation of Translation

Cilia and Flagellary Motions, using microtubules

Cellular Transport Mechanisms

Protein Synthesis” (overview section, omitting the detailed molecular mechanisms)

Osmosis and Tonicity

Crenation and Hydrolysis

DNA (a NOVA site)

DNA—basic nucleotide structure

DNA coiling

Replication, a basic view

The Central Dogma

Do you know the structure of the 4 nucleotide bases?? Play this fun video game!!

“How Cells Divide: Mitosis and Meisos” (a NOVA site)

Transcription and Translation interactive—(a fun, short demo for classrooms also)

“How Cancer Grows”

Cloning the Insulin Gene

TISSUES:

Tissue Histology Slides and commentary

Stem Cells and Differentiation

Simple Membrane components—a review

INTEGUMENT:

Animation of keratinocytes life cycle

Strata layers—a review exercise

Inflammation of the Integument

BONE TISSUE:

Simple illustrations of the typical blood supply to Bones

Embryonic Ossification

Bone Lengthening

Bone Pathologies

SKELETON:

Skull Practice Interactive Tutorial—fun way to practice!

Hand Bones Interactive Tutorial—fun way to practice!

JOINTS:

              Great details for the Hip Joint, Knee Joint, and Joint Movements

MUSCLES:

The muscle cell-fiber

Myosin-Actin sliding filament model

Sliding Filament model

Quick and cute Muscle Information

If you wish to view the dissection of the muscles of a human cadaver, then here’s the link.

Excellent animation of a neuromuscular junction

NEURAL TISSUES:

Great Harvard site for Action Potential explanation!

Simple comparison between continuous and salutatory conduction

This Harvard site has a nice introduction into synapse action between neurons. Afterward, you can select to view how nicotine, heroin, etc., affects the synapse activity.

McGill University and Canadian Health present understanding dopamine.

This PBS site covers understanding alcohol effect on neurotransmitters in the brain.

This pharmaceutical site has a brief animation of re-uptake inhibitors, illustrating Prozac’s effects at the synapse of brain neurons of depressed patients.

CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM:

                Animated flow of CSF

                Nice overview of the brain, along with aging and Alzheimer’s views

Brain regions

Review of brain regions

Electrode stimulation of motor cortex- fun!

Circle of Willis, close-up labeled photograph

Prions

Peripheral Nerves:

Reflex Arc Components

Cranial Nerves I-XII

SPECIAL SENSES:

The following is a very good tutorial animation for the EAR structures.

Well-done: Cochlear response to pitch differences

Great animation on Equilibrium

Basic Eye Structures

Eye Tutorial is very good, but quiz at the end seems faulty, so ignore that last view.

Practice Quiz on Eye Structures

Lens Accommodation

Rhodopsin conformational change to light stimulus

Basic taste overview

Taste buds structure, with simple quiz self-check at the end

Brief overview of smell perception

Touch perception

Procioceptors site animation; at the screen bottom click on “Spindles and GTO” (i.e., muscle spindles and golgi tendon organs) and there’s more info here than needed, likely.


Anatomy II Topics

Cardiac System Renal System
Respiratory System Body Fluids Homeostasis
Vascular System Digestive System
Blood Tissue Nutrition & Metabolism
Lymphatic System Endocrine System
Immune System Reproductive System & Processes

General Suggested A&P links:

The following site is published by the textbook publisher Wiley and has numerous illustrations of anatomical structures that allow interactions by the student, to self-check their knowledge. The topics listed there follow the same topics in your A&P textbook. Some students report using this site routinely in their A&P studies; give it a try.

McGraw-Hill textbook publisher has a good site also for weekly review of A&P topics. It doesn’t involve animations, just photos and review texts. It is basic but helpful.

Interested in Pathologies of the body? Then, this Medline Plus site should be interesting.

This college has a Biology website that lists API and APII on the left side bar. You can select from tutorials or animations that send you to various links throughout the web. Many of the following listed websites are culled from this site, although you might wish to explore it yourself. If you find other great sites, then let your A&P instructor know, to share with other students.

Cardiac System

Heart Anatomy

Blood Flow through the heart

Valves

Heart Cycle

EKG

Coronary Blood vessels

Cholesterol and its role and transport

The Heart and Circulation

Respiratory System

                Anatomy

                Overview of respiration

                Partial pressures during external and internal respiration

                Gas Exchange simple overview animation, plus various pollutant effects on exchange

Asthma

Vascular Supply

Vascular Layers

Capillary Bed

Upper Major  Blood Vessels

Major Arm Blood Vessels

Torso Blood Vessels

Major Pelvic/Leg Blood Vessels

Circle of Willis

Plaque Formation

Blood Pressure Measurements

                Multiple animations here, including Hypertension, Plaque Development, etc.

Blood

Red Blood Cells

White Blood Cells

Hemostasis (basics)

Hemostasis (detailed)

Blood Typing Game

Lymphatic and Immune Systems

Lymph System Anatomy

Lymph Capillary

Lymph Vessel Trunks & Ducts

Overview of Human Immunity

Signaling for immune responses

Macrophage Presentation, T and B cells

Specific Defenders dendritic activation of lymph cells

Specific immune Defenses macrophage, T and B cells

More Immune Cells (T, B, etc.) animation

                Chemotaxis and Phagocytosis

Renal/Urinary System

                Overview of Kidney, Nephrons, Bladder anatomy

                Kidney structures and function

                Renal Vascular anatomy

                Kidney/ Nephron anatomy and physiology—excellent; click the “Animation” tab to see

                Physiology at Nephron Regions Be sure to use the drop-down menu to access these regions.

                EXCELLENT animated overview of JGA Function

                Trying to understand the Osmolarity Changes along the Loop

                Micturition Signalling

                Osmosis overview

Endocrine System

Excellent animation of Steroid Action on genes

Very nice animation of G protein Signal Transduction

General overview of Steroid vs. Protein Hormones

Signal Transduction including hormone action

G Protein Signalling and cellular effects—exceptional graphics of membrane events

Nice animation of Adrenaline binding, G Protein, cAMP, Glucose Availability

Brief animation of Adrenaline-cAMP-Glucose synthesis

Basic and good review of the Hormones and their Actions

Hormone/Gland Matching game

Thyroid Hormone

Thyroid Disorders

Diabetes

Thorough review of Endocrine Signalling and hormones (Use the page selector to scroll through the lesson; found at top of screen view.)

Digestion

Swallowing

Very brief animation of Peristalsis

Histology Sections (click on the term to see it highlighted on the slide)—Site also includes a brief animation of amylase action.

Regulation of Gastric Secretions

Gastric Acid and Inhibitory Rx

Very brief animation of Pancreatic Response to Duodenal H+

Very brief animation of Lipid Regulation of Duodenal Bile Release

Cholesterol : Overview, Transport, and Heart Disease from menu (Omit “Synthesis” unless you are keenly enthusiastic about biochemistry.)

Nutrition and Metabolism

Localizing  Various Metabolic Changes in the body

Good overview of Fats in the Body

Fatty Acids—Storage State vs. Mobilization

Citric Acid Cycle

Oxidative phosphorylation

Reproduction

Spermatogenesis

Meiosis Click the “Animation” tab

Comparison of Mitosis and Meiosis

Penile anatomy and physiology of Erections

Estrogen & Progesterone monthly cycling

Monthly Changes in female hormones and structure

Pregnancy Testing for hCG protein—Click on the “positive” test results

The Ovarian and Uterine Cycle Click on the “Animation” tab

Fertilization Click on the “Animation” tab

Amazing video and photography here documents Embryo Development, from pre-fertilization to birth

More great video of Embryo Developmental Changes—esp. section “Just the Facts” and “video”

NOVA’s Award winning “Life’s Greatest Miracle” program aired on PBS to acclaim

Fetal changes during Sex Determination

Genetic possibilities of Blood Types

[ top ]


» Back to Learning Links
» Back to Learning Assistance Center Home

 

 
 
Last updated 4/15/08


 
Southwestern Community College • 447 College Drive • Sylva, NC 28779
828·586·4091 or 800·447·4091
fax 828·586·3129