机能实验学(第二版)(英文版)

Chapter 1. An Introduction of Functional Experimentation 第1章 机能实验学绪论 1. Definition (定义) An experiment is a test or an investigation， especially one planned to provide evidence for or against a hypothesis. Experimentation is the act， process， or practice of experimenting. Usually， "Experiment" refers to a particular control1ed test. "Experimentation" means "experiments" in a collective sense or in general or the discipline of conducting experiments. An experiment or a test can be carried out using the scientific method to answer a question or to investigate a problem. First， an observation is made. Then， a question is asked， or a problem arises. Next， a hypothesis is formed. Then experimentation is used to test that hypothesis. The results are analyzed， a conc1usion is drawn， sometimes a new theory is formed， and results the communicated through research papers. Experimental Medicine (实验医学) ， a broad term ， refers to "lnvestigation undertaken in humans， relating where appropriate to model systems， to identify mechanisms of pathophysiology or disease， or to demonstrate proof-of-concept evidence of the validity and importance of new discoveries or treatments." According to the definition from Dictionary. com， experimental medicine refers to the scientific investigation of medical problems by experimentation upon animals or by clinical research. 1t consists of basic animal experimental research (early phase) and clinical trials (late phase). The effective translation of results from experimental medicine studies into later phase clinical research is an important outcome of experimental medicine， as is the generation of new hypotheses to be explored in the laboratory. Functional experimentation (机能实验学) is a new branch of experimental medicine concemed with the study of the functional changes in experimental animals. More specifically， it is a new experimental course of basic medical sciences in Chinese medical school， which involves the study of the changes in organ function and tissue metabolism during normal or pathological conditions， with or without the inf1uence of drug treatment. The field encompasses at least three subjects， namely， physiology， pathophysiology and pharmacoloy. Physiology(生理学) is the science of the function of a living organism or any of its parts. This includes how organisms and their organ systems carry out the physical or chemical functions of life that exist in a living system. Human physiology is the science of the mechanical， physical， and biochemical functions of humans in good health， their organs， and the cel1s of which they are composed. The principallevel of focus in physiology is at the level of organs and systems. Much of the foundation of knowledge in human physiology was provided by animal experimentation. The study of human physiology dates back to at least 420 B. C. and the time of Hippocrates(希波克拉底)， the father of medicine. The critical thinking of Aristotle(亚里士多德) and his emphasis on the relationship between structure and function marked the beginning of physiology in Ancient Greece， while Claudius Galenus (c. 129-200 A. D. )， known as Galen(盖伦)， was the first to use experiments to probe the function of the body. Galen was the founder of experimental physiology. The medical world moved on from Galenism(盖伦学说) only with the appearance of Andreas Vesalius(安德鲁斯 维萨里斯) and William Harvey(威廉 哈维). Anatomist Wil1iam Harvey described the circulatory system in the 17th century， demonstrating the fruitful combination of close observations and careful experiments to learn about the functions of the body， which was fundamenta1 to the development of experimental physiology. In the 19th century， physiological knowledge began to accumulate at a rapid rate， particularly with the appearance of the Cell theory of Matthias Schleiden and Theodor Schwannin in 1838. But in that time， doctors based their theories on metaphysical (形而上学) ideology， and personal experience often dictated their clinical decisions. Science-based medicine was largely absent. It was not until French physiologist Claude Bernard (1813-1878) began to perform a series of rigorous laboratory investigations and animal experimentation， that the old medicine had begun to enter scientific modern times. Bernard's most notable discoveries are the role of the pancreas in digestion， and the liver's ability to make sugar. Bernard's masterpiece was his book entit1ed "An Introduction to the Study of Experimental Medicine"， published in 1865. In his book， Bernard argued that progress in medicine could not be achieved without the application of experimental physiology. Therefore， Claude Bernard is acknowledged as the father and founder of experimental medicine. Physiology is the study of normal， healthy bodily function (as opposed to anatomy， which is the study of normal structure). When something disrupts normal physiological processes， it enters the realm of pathophysiology. Pathophysio