Discuss the six basic life processes and your own example for each.
All live organisms have distinct characteristics that differentiate them apart from non-living things. One of the most complicated forms of life, humans, have six (6) basic life processes such as metabolism, responsiveness, movement, growth, differentiation, and reproduction. These processes are connected to one another. To preserve life and promote an individual's well-being, they all work in harmony with one another. Death and illnesses are signs that the balance between these systems has been compromised.
The term "metabolism" describes the chemical mechanisms that the body uses to turn food and liquids into energy. Both anabolism and catabolism are included. Anabolism involves the preservation of bodily tissues, the maintenance of new cells, and the storage of energy. The opposite is catabolism, which uses energy to break down and move, heat, and revitalize the body. The breakdown of fatty acids to create energy, mostly in the form of adenosine triphosphate (catabolic), and the production of fatty acids for storage purposes (anabolic) are examples of this process.
Detecting changes in the internal and external surroundings and reacting to such changes are both considered to be responsiveness. Sensing a stimulus and reacting to it is what it is. As an instance, consider how fear causes someone's heart to beat more rapidly and causes them to sweat profusely.
In addition to movements at the body's joints, human movement also involves the motion of certain organs and even specific cells. For instance, humans walk to reach a destination. Walking is a form of movement.
Humans develop and grow in ways that are predetermined by their DNA. Growth occurs because cells grow larger or because cells increase in number. Human cells undergo differentiation as they multiply. Anabolic reactions must proceed more quickly than catabolic reactions for growth to take place. In particular, a baby's arms and legs lengthen and gain muscle over the first two years of life.
Through the developmental process of differentiation, unspecialized cells become specialized cells with unique structural and functional properties. Such precursor cells, which may proliferate and produce cells that go through differentiation and are known as stem cells, would be an example.
Reproduction, in a wider context, refers to the synthesis of new cells for growth as well as for the replacement and repair of old cells. The reproductive systems of the male and female carry out reproduction in humans.
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References:
- Betts, G. J., Desaix, P., Johnson, E., Johnson, J., Korol, O., Kruse, D., . . . Young, K. (2017). Anatomy & Physiology. OpenStax.
- Dinh, H.-D. (2019). Living Cell Characteristics. Retrieved from Sciencing: https://sciencing.com/living-cell-characteristics-7464841.html
- Tortora, G. J., & Derrickson, B. H. (2017). Principles of Anatomy and Physiology (15th ed.). Wiley.