Various functions of the skeletal system.

by | Feb 12, 2025 | biology

 

Select two of the unit student learning outcome (USLO) prompts below to respond to in this week’s reflection.

Distinguish the various functions of the skeletal system.
Differentiate the macroscopic and microscopic features of bone.
Differentiate the various processes of bone formation and remodeling.
Identify the hormones that affect blood calcium and the skeleton.
Classify bone fractures and the steps involved in repair.
Differentiate homeostatic imbalances of the skeletal system

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Let’s break down the functions, features, processes, and imbalances of the skeletal system.

1. Functions of the Skeletal System:

  • Support: Provides a framework for the body, supporting soft tissues and organs. Imagine the body without a skeleton – it would collapse!  
  • Protection: Encloses and protects vital organs, such as the brain (cranium), heart and lungs (rib cage), and spinal cord (vertebral column).  
  • Movement: Provides attachment points for muscles, allowing for a wide range of movements. Bones act as levers, and joints act as fulcrums.  
  • Storage: Serves as a reservoir for minerals, particularly calcium and phosphorus. These minerals are essential for various physiological processes.  
  • Blood Cell Production (Hematopoiesis): Red bone marrow, found in certain bones, is responsible for producing red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.  
  • Triglyceride Storage: Yellow bone marrow, found in the medullary cavity of long bones, stores triglycerides (fats), which can serve as an energy reserve.  

2. Macroscopic and Microscopic Features of Bone:

Macroscopic (Visible to the Naked Eye):

  • Long Bones: Longer than they are wide (e.g., femur, humerus). Characterized by a shaft (diaphysis) and two ends (epiphyses).  
  • Short Bones: Cube-shaped (e.g., carpals, tarsals).  
  • Flat Bones: Thin and often curved (e.g., skull bones, sternum).  
  • Irregular Bones: Have complex shapes that don’t fit into other categories (e.g., vertebrae, hip bones).  
  • Compact Bone: Dense, smooth, and solid outer layer of bone.  
  • Spongy Bone (Cancellous Bone): Lattice-like structure of bony spicules (trabeculae) found inside bones, particularly at the epiphyses.  

Microscopic (Requires Magnification):

  • Osteons (Haversian Systems): The basic structural and functional units of compact bone. Consist of concentric layers of bone matrix surrounding a central canal (Haversian canal).  
  • Osteocytes: Mature bone cells located within lacunae (small cavities) in the bone matrix.  
  • Bone Matrix: The non-cellular component of bone, composed of organic (collagen fibers) and inorganic (calcium phosphate) materials. Collagen provides flexibility, while calcium phosphate provides hardness.  

Let’s break down the functions, features, processes, and imbalances of the skeletal system.

1. Functions of the Skeletal System:

  • Support: Provides a framework for the body, supporting soft tissues and organs. Imagine the body without a skeleton – it would collapse!  
  • Protection: Encloses and protects vital organs, such as the brain (cranium), heart and lungs (rib cage), and spinal cord (vertebral column).  
  • Movement: Provides attachment points for muscles, allowing for a wide range of movements. Bones act as levers, and joints act as fulcrums.  
  • Storage: Serves as a reservoir for minerals, particularly calcium and phosphorus. These minerals are essential for various physiological processes.  
  • Blood Cell Production (Hematopoiesis): Red bone marrow, found in certain bones, is responsible for producing red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.  
  • Triglyceride Storage: Yellow bone marrow, found in the medullary cavity of long bones, stores triglycerides (fats), which can serve as an energy reserve.  

2. Macroscopic and Microscopic Features of Bone:

Macroscopic (Visible to the Naked Eye):

  • Long Bones: Longer than they are wide (e.g., femur, humerus). Characterized by a shaft (diaphysis) and two ends (epiphyses).  
  • Short Bones: Cube-shaped (e.g., carpals, tarsals).  
  • Flat Bones: Thin and often curved (e.g., skull bones, sternum).  
  • Irregular Bones: Have complex shapes that don’t fit into other categories (e.g., vertebrae, hip bones).  
  • Compact Bone: Dense, smooth, and solid outer layer of bone.  
  • Spongy Bone (Cancellous Bone): Lattice-like structure of bony spicules (trabeculae) found inside bones, particularly at the epiphyses.  

Microscopic (Requires Magnification):

  • Osteons (Haversian Systems): The basic structural and functional units of compact bone. Consist of concentric layers of bone matrix surrounding a central canal (Haversian canal).  
  • Osteocytes: Mature bone cells located within lacunae (small cavities) in the bone matrix.  
  • Bone Matrix: The non-cellular component of bone, composed of organic (collagen fibers) and inorganic (calcium phosphate) materials. Collagen provides flexibility, while calcium phosphate provides hardness.  
  • Canaliculi: Tiny channels that connect lacunae, allowing osteocytes to communicate and receive nutrients.  
  • Volkmann’s Canals: Channels that connect the Haversian canals, providing pathways for blood vessels and nerves.  

3. Bone Formation and Remodeling:

Bone Formation (Ossification):

  • Intramembranous Ossification: Bone develops directly from a fibrous membrane (e.g., skull bones).  
  • Endochondral Ossification: Bone develops by replacing a hyaline cartilage model (e.g., long bones).  

Bone Remodeling: A continuous process involving bone resorption (breakdown) by osteoclasts and bone deposition (formation) by osteoblasts. This process is essential for:  

  • Bone Growth and Development: Allows bones to adapt to changing size and shape.
  • Bone Repair: Replaces damaged bone tissue.  
  • Calcium Homeostasis: Releases calcium from bone into the bloodstream when needed.

4. Hormones Affecting Blood Calcium and the Skeleton:

  • Parathyroid Hormone (PTH): Increases blood calcium levels by stimulating osteoclast activity (bone resorption) and increasing calcium absorption in the intestines and kidneys.
  • Calcitonin: Decreases blood calcium levels by inhibiting osteoclast activity and increasing calcium deposition in bones.
  • Vitamin D: Promotes calcium absorption in the intestines and plays a role in bone formation and remodeling.  
  • Growth Hormone: Stimulates bone growth, particularly during childhood and adolescence.  
  • Sex Hormones (Estrogen and Testosterone): Influence bone growth and remodeling, particularly during puberty.  

5. Bone Fractures and Repair:

Classification:

  • Closed (Simple) Fracture: Bone is broken, but the skin is intact.  
  • Open (Compound) Fracture: Bone is broken, and the skin is broken, increasing the risk of infection.  
  • Complete Fracture: Bone is broken into two or more pieces.
  • Incomplete Fracture: Bone is partially broken (e.g., greenstick fracture).  
  • Displaced Fracture: Bone fragments are misaligned.  
  • Nondisplaced Fracture: Bone fragments are still aligned.  

Steps in Repair:

  1. Hematoma Formation: Blood clot forms at the fracture site.  
  2. Fibrocartilaginous Callus Formation: Fibrocartilage replaces the hematoma.
  3. Bony Callus Formation: Osteoblasts begin forming spongy bone, converting the fibrocartilaginous callus into a bony callus.  
  4. Bone Remodeling: The bony callus is remodeled into compact bone, restoring the bone to its original shape and strength.  

6. Homeostatic Imbalances of the Skeletal System:

  • Osteoporosis: A condition characterized by decreased bone density and increased risk of fractures. Often caused by hormonal changes (e.g., menopause), inadequate calcium intake, or lack of exercise.  
  • Osteomalacia (Rickets in Children): Softening of bones due to vitamin D deficiency, leading to impaired calcium absorption and bone mineralization.  
  • Paget’s Disease: A disorder characterized by abnormal bone remodeling, leading to enlarged and weakened bones.  
  • Osteogenesis Imperfecta (Brittle Bone Disease): A genetic disorder that results in weak and brittle bones due to defects in collagen production.  
  • Bone Cancer: Tumors that develop in bone tissue.  

Understanding these aspects of the skeletal system is essential for maintaining bone health and preventing or managing skeletal disorders.

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