The six main basic life processes help distinguish living organisms from the non-living. They are as follows:
(1) Metabolism is the sum of all the chemical processes that occur in the body; with catabolism as the breakdown of complex chemical substances into simpler components, and anabolism as the building up of complex chemical substances from smaller, simpler components. An example of catabolism is the degradation of fat in adipose tissue unto fatty acid, while bone development and mineralization is an example of anabolism.
(2) Responsiveness is the body’s ability to detect and respond to stimuli. One example of this is the jerking away of the hand when it touches something hot.
(3) Movement refers to the motion of the whole body, individual organs, single cells, and even tiny structures inside cells. The flagellar movement of sperm cells to reach the egg cell is an example of this life process.
(4) Growth is an increase in body size that results from an increase in the size of existing cells, an increase in the number of cells, or both. Adolescents growing several inches as they undergo puberty is one example of growth.
(5) Differentiation refers to the development of a cell from an unspecialized to a specialized state. An example is the development of a single-celled zygote into a multicellular embryo that further develops into the various cell types of a fetus; and lastly,
(6) Reproduction is either new cell formation for tissue growth, repair, or replacement, or new individual production. For example, after fertilization and pregnancy, childbirth indicates that a new individual is born.
References
Tortora, G. J., & Derrickson, B. (2014). Principles of Anatomy and Physiology (14th ed.). Wiley.