Life Science Sites

A comprehensive listing of free high-quality life science websites

Health Sciences

Immunology

Immunology is the study of the immune system, which is an assemblage of related tissues that function to protect organisms against disease due to things like infection and cancer. Immunology includes the study of the individual components of the immune system (e.g. white blood cells), its physiological functioning (e.g. disease immunity and the immune response), and conditions that arise from its dysfunction (e.g. autoimmune diseases).

The Biology Project: Immunology (University of Arizona, Problem sets)
BMC Immunology (Open Access Journal)
Department of Immunology (University of Toronto)
The Immune System - An Overview
Immunobiology (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)
Immunology (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Immunology (Textbook, University of South Carolina)
Immunology (Wikibook)
Immunology Index (Lectures)
Immunology Links (Harvard University)

Pathology

Pathology is the study of disease, which is an abnormal condition of an organism that messes with bodily functions. Pathology includes the study of the causes, processes, progression, and outcome of diseases.

The Basic Medical Pathology Series (National Library of Medicine)
Interactive Pathology Laboratory (University of Alabama)
The Internet Pathology Laboratory (University of Utah)
Pathology (Wikipedia)
The Pathology Guy (Lecture Notes)

Pharmacology

Pharmacology is the study of drugs, which are chemicals capable of producing a physiological change of some sort in an organism. Pharmacology includes the study of the chemistry, uses, interactions, and effects of drugs.

Local Anaesthetic Pharmacology
Medical Pharmacology (Dr. Michael Gordon)
Interactive Clinical Pharmacology

Toxicology

Toxicology is the study of the poisons, which are chemicals capable of producing a pathological change of some sort in an organism. In other words, the study of poisons. Toxicology includes the study of the chemistry, effects, and detection of poisons and the treatment of poisonings.

Environmental Contaminants Encyclopedia (National Park Service)
Poisonous Plants Informational Database (Cornell University)
The EXtension TOXicology NETwork (EXTOXNET)
Toxicology Data Network (TOXNET)
The toxicology of male reproduction (Review paper)

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Microbiology

Medical Microbiology (Textbook, University of Texas Medical Branch)

Bacteriology

Bacteriology is the study of bacteria, which are microscopic single-celled prokaryotes that can be found pretty much everywhere on this planet, and their applications in and impact on medicine, agriculture, and industry.

Bacteria (Wikipedia)
Bacterial Motility and Behavior Videos (Harvard University)
Bacteriology (Textbook, University of South Carolina)
Todar's Online Textbook of Bacteriology

Virology

Virology is the study of viruses, which are microscopic bits of nucleic acid usually contained in some sort of protein/fat/sugar vehicle, and the diseases they cause.

All the Virology on the WWW
Virology (Textbook, University of South Carolina)
Virology Journal (Open Access Journal)
Viruses (Kimball's Biology Pages)

Mycology

Mycology is the study of fungi, which are heterotrophic eukaryotes that grow as a mass of branching tubes (hyphae), feed by decomposing and absorbing the organic material on which they grow, and produce spores. Examples of fungi include moulds, mushrooms, mildews, and yeasts.

Doctor Fungus
Fungal Biology (University of Sydney)
Fungi of Australia
Moulds: their isolation, cultivation, and identification (Textbook)
Mycology (Textbook, University of South Carolina)
Mycology Resources (Cornell University)
The Fifth Kingdom (Textbook)

Parasitology

Parasitology is the study of parasites, the organisms they live off of, and how the two interact (i.e. parasitism).

Parasitology (Course Notes)
Parasitology (Michigan State University)
Parasitology (Textbook, University of South Carolina)

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Other Biology

Anatomy/Histology

Anatomy is the study of the structure, position, and interrelation of the various parts of animals and plants (usually humans). Histology is a subfield of anatomy dealing with the study of the microscopic structure of animal and plant tissues.

Anatomy (National Institutes of Health)
Anatomy Dissection Videos (University of Wisconsin)
Anatomy Atlases
Blue Histology (University of Western Australia)
Grey's Anatomy of the Human Body (1918 Edition)
Histology Resources (Lots of Links, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center)
Human Anatomy Online

Botany

Botany is the study of plants, which are multicellular photosynthetic eukaryotes that generally contain chloroplasts, posses cellulose-based cell walls, and lack the power of locomotion. Also called plant biology.

Botany Lectures (Pacific Union College)
Internet Directory for Botany
Introduction to Botany (Lectures, California State University)
Plant Biology (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Plant Pathology (University of Sydney)

Developmental biology

Developmental biology is the study of the processes that transform a zygote or asexual reproductive unit to an adult. This includes the study of cellular differentiation. Embryology is a subfield of developmental biology.

Developmental Biology (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Developmental Biology (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)
Developmental Biology Online (University of Guelph)
Developmental Biology of Plants and Animals
Embryo Images Online
The Virtual Embryo (University of Calgary)

Evolutionary biology

Evolutionary biology is the study of the processes of evolutionary change in populations of organisms. It also pisses off creationists, which is awesome.

BMC Evolutionary Biology (Open Access Journal)
Elementary Evolutionary Biology
Evolutionary Biology (Course Notes, Brown University)

General biology

General biology is where I put links to resources that deal very generally with biology, the study of living organisms.

Introduction to Biology (Textbook, Sign-up required)
General Biology (Wikibook)
Kimball's Biology Pages
An On-Line Biology Book (Estrella Mountain Community College)

Genetics

Genetics is the study of heredity and variation in living organisms, particularly the mechanisms of hereditary transmission.

Basic Principles of Genetics (Dr. Dennis O'Neil, Palomar College)
Essentials of Genetics
Genetics (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Genetics (Textbook, Sign-up required)
Genomes (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)
A Primer on Genomics and Its Impact on Science and Society (U.S. Department of Energy)

Marine biology

Marine biology is the study of living organisms that hang out in the ocean or other salty bodies of water.

MarineBio.org
Marine Biology (Wikipedia)

Zoology

Zoology is the study of animals, which are multicellular heterotrophic eukaryotes that can move voluntarily, actively acquire food and digest it, and possess sensory and nervous systems.

Arachnology (Course notes, New Mexico State University)
Arachnology (Wikipedia)
The Arachnology Home Page (Lots of Links)
The World Spider Catalog
Entomology (University of Sydney)
Entomology Links (Texas A&M University)
Herpetology (Lecture notes, University of Texas)
Ichthyology (Wikipedia)
Ichthyology Notes (Hillsborough Community College
Ichthyology Web Resources (University of Alberta)
Ornithology (Lecture notes, Eastern Kentucky University)
Ornithology (Wikipedia)

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Scaled Biology

Biochemistry

Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes that occur in living organisms. It includes the study of the structure and function of the biomolecules such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, and nucleic acids.

Biochemistry (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Biochemistry (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)
Biochemistry Online (Textbook, College of Saint Benedict | Saint John's University)
The Medical Biochemistry Page

Molecular biology

Molecular biology is the study of biology at the molecular level. It includes the study of DNA, RNA, proteins, and other macromolecules involved in cell function. There is overlap between it and biochemistry and cell biology.

Molecular Biology (Textbook, Sign-up required)
Molecular Biology of the Cell (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)
Molecular Cell Biology (Searchable Textbook, National Centre for Biotechnology Information)

Cell biology

Cell biology is the study of biology at the cellular level. It includes the study of the physiological properties, structure, components, interactions, life cycle, reproduction, and death of cells.

The Biology Project: Cell Biology (University of Arizona, Problem sets)
Cell Biology (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Cell Biology (University of Texas Medical Branch)
Cell Biology (Wikibook)

Physiology

Physiology is the study of biology at the organism level. It includes the study of the functions of living organisms and their parts.

Human Physiology (Wikibook)
Medical Physiology and Pathophysiology (Textbook, University of Copenhagen)
Physiology (Kimball's Biology Pages)

Ecology

Ecology is the study of the interactions between organisms and their environment, including other organisms.

Behavioral Ecology (Lecture notes, Eastern Kentucky University)
Ecology (Kimball's Biology Pages)
Ecology (Wikibook)