BRANCHES OF BIOLOGY AND WHAT THEY STUDY - BIOLOGY - 2025

The main branches of biology include botany, embryology, biophysics, virology, marine biology, and immunology. Biology is an extremely broad area of ​​knowledge, since its main object of study is the living being.

By covering so much field, biology allows us to understand very specific elements of animals, plants, human beings and other organisms and microorganisms that make life on the planet.

Biology is the science in charge of studying living things. Source: pixabay.com

The primary motivation of biology is to understand the origin of living beings, as well as the characteristics of their structures and the correlations that exist between them. Thanks to biology it is possible to better understand life in general.

The most important branches of biology

Anatomy

Anatomy is responsible for studying the bone and muscle structure of living beings. Take into consideration the location of the elements, the shape they have, how they are arranged and what kind of relationship they have with each other.

This branch is divided into different specialties, such as veterinary, descriptive, pediatric, plant, sports, geriatric and radiological anatomy, among others.

Astrobiology

Study life outside planet Earth. His main interest is linked to explorations in search of habitable sites in space and focuses on understanding the origin, development and evolution of different forms of extraterrestrial life.

Biochemistry

Biochemistry focuses its attention on understanding the functionalities and structure of cells, essential elements for all living beings.

Study the chemical composition of beings, as well as the relationships that exist between them and the evolution that is generated by these interactions.

Biochemical Engineering

This type of engineering analyzes the processes related to fermentation. In his studies, he applies knowledge related to organic chemistry, molecular biology, mathematics and general chemistry.

Biogeography

Biogeography is responsible for studying the way in which living beings are distributed on Earth, as well as the reason for this distribution.

This implies that it is not only responsible for describing, but also concentrates its efforts on interpreting the different relationships between living beings and their place in the world.

Bioinformatics

This discipline is responsible for promoting the application of computer science in the process related to medical or biological data.

Computer principles are applied in the data collection and organization phases, as well as when analyzing and manipulating them to generate useful information.

Biolinguistics

It is a multidisciplinary branch that focuses on the language of human beings. The main objective is to study and understand the fundamentals related to human language.

Some of the disciplines that participate in these studies are psychology, traditional linguistics, neurology and genetics, among others.

Biomechanics

The focus of biomechanics is on the human body and its movements. This discipline seeks to understand what kind of consequences are produced in the mechanical field when the body performs one or another activity.

It takes into account the energy and mechanical loads to which the body is exposed, both in calm situations and in other situations of greater intensity.

Biophysics

Double helix of DNA chain. Source: Joseluissc3

It is responsible for studying all physical principles that are directly related to the biological processes of beings.

The main premise of biophysics is that all phenomena that occur in nature have a scientific explanation that can be predicted.

Biotechnology

Biotechnology pursues the combination of technological methods with biological systems to generate new processes or modify old procedures; the intention is to implement these processes to achieve a specific purpose.

Some of the disciplines involved in biotechnology are pharmacy, chemistry, medicine, and agriculture, among others.

Synthetic biology

This discipline is related to biotechnology, and focuses on genetic material. Its function is to generate organisms whose genetics have been modified.

Through synthetic biology it is possible to combine different genetic structures, as well as add or remove genes from a certain organism to create new beings.

Botany

Botany focuses exclusively on the study of plants. It is pure when it is purely theoretical, and it is applied when it is used in a practical way (for example, pharmaceutical, molecular or agricultural botany).

Phycology

The object of study of ficology is algae. This discipline studies the structure, operation and general properties of algae, which are the simplest plants on the planet.

Astrobotany

It is responsible for studying the genetic structure of those plants that are capable of developing and subsisting in spaces with extreme characteristics.

In these studies, plants are often exposed to high levels of radiation, changing temperatures, and poor hydration.

Cell biology

Cell biology devotes all its efforts to study, understand and analyze the cell, which corresponds to the essential and main component of all living beings on planet Earth.

Studies focus on understanding cell structure, its components and the different interactions that can be generated.

Chronobiology

This discipline is in charge of studying the biological variations of organisms considering time; In other words, it studies biological rhythms.

Chronobiology specialists indicate that these biological rhythms program the functioning of the different processes of the body.

Biological conservation

Also known as conservation biology, it is a branch of biology that focuses on protecting the planet's biodiversity.

Biological conservation emerged as a consequence of the enormous loss of species in recent years and focuses its action on the most vulnerable populations.

Cryobiology

Cryobiology focuses on understanding how living organisms are affected at low temperatures. The main objective is to know how low temperatures can be used to conserve organic matter.

Developmental biology

This branch of biology focuses on the processes of generation of new beings. Thanks to the understanding of these processes, it is possible to identify normalities and irregularities.

Among the elements considered in developmental biology, the molecular, growth and morphological mechanisms and those related to cells and their interactions stand out.

Embryology

It focuses on the study of beings before their birth. The main objective is to understand how prenatal development occurs and what processes determine it.

Gerontology

Gerontology focuses its attention on the processes that occur in old age. It is a fairly broad discipline that is complemented by psychology, biology, sociology, and even political and economic fields.

Ecology

Study the relationships that are generated between living beings and the environments where they live. It also considers the patterns of behavior, the distribution of beings and the way in which they influence the different interactions that may occur.

Evolutionary biology

It focuses its attention on the variations that living beings experience over time, and on the relationships and interactions that are generated in a given period of time.

Genetics

Genetics is dedicated to understanding the process of passing genes from generation to generation. The object of study of this discipline is the so-called biological inheritance.

Epigenetics

It is responsible for studying the variations in the genes that are inherited and that do not correspond to alterations in the DNA chain.

Immunology

It is a specialty associated with medicine that seeks the proper functioning of the body's defense system. Among the specific elements that it studies, allergies and autoimmune diseases stand out.

Marine biology

Marine biology studies the biological processes of the beings that inhabit the aquatic environment, as well as the relationships between them and their environments.

Microbiology

Microbiology studies microorganisms, the smallest beings on Earth that can only be observed through a microscope. It especially focuses its attention on pathogens, such as fungi and viruses.

Bacteriology

This branch of study is derived from microbiology and focuses its attention on bacteria. Study everything related to its morphology, its behaviors and its biochemical and genetic elements.

Mycology

Mycology studies fungi and their components. It also focuses on understanding their reproductive processes and the applications they have in the fields of medicine and food.

parasitology

This science studies parasites, as well as the interactions that occur between them and the environment in which they are hosted.

Virology

It is considered a branch of microbiology and is responsible for the study of viruses. It seeks to understand the structure and evolutionary cycle of viruses, as well as the forms of contagion, the diseases that occur and the possible ways of cultivation in order to obtain more information about them.

Molecular biology

It focuses on how they are, what functions they have and how the so-called macromolecules, or molecules important in biological terms, behave; such is the case of DNA, hormones and RNA, among others.

Neurobiology

This discipline focuses on the biological processes that actively participate in the regulation of the behavior of the nervous system.

Neuroscience

It is a multidisciplinary science that focuses on the nervous system. The intention is to understand how the brain behaves and what elements influence the control of nervous reactions.

Paleontology

The object of study of paleontology are fossils. The main goal is to study these pieces in order to understand what life was like in earlier times.

Pathology

It is the branch of study in charge of studying diseases. The emphasis of this specialty is in the biological field, not in the medical one.

Pharmacology

It studies how a specific drug works in the body, as well as how the body responds and what effects are generated in the short and long term.

Physiology

Physiology studies the functions that organisms have. This science seeks to analyze the way in which systems interact with each other and with the other elements of the body to generate optimal functioning.

Phytopathology

Through phytopathology it is possible to understand and analyze the diseases that affect plants. It focuses specifically on studying the agents that generate infections and diseases related to the physiology of plants, and does not consider conditions caused by other animals

Psychobiology

This discipline focuses on the biological foundation related to human behavior. Study those biological processes that allow humans to interact constructively with their environment.

Quantum biology

This recent branch of biology focuses on the study of biological processes that are generated in beings and that are related to the quantum field (energy management).

The tunnel effect, studied in depth through quantum mechanics, is one of the processes that quantum biologists analyze.

Systems biology

This branch of biology is directly combined with mathematics. It seeks to represent the interactions that occur within a biological process through systems of mathematics.

Structural biology

The focus of this discipline is the study of the structure of macromolecules, but considering the three-dimensional scope. The main idea is to have a vision of biological processes considering the atomic and molecular levels.

Thanks to this, it is possible to have a better notion about the molecular structures of the various living beings that inhabit the planet.

Theoretical biology

Theoretical biology is responsible for studying biological phenomena through theoretical methods typical of mathematics, computer science and physics.

Its objects of study are the most complex biological systems, which need a more methodical and systematic approach in order to be understood correctly.

Zoology

It studies the animal kingdom, including its interactions with the environment and with other living beings, as well as its morphology, its behaviors and the characteristics of its evolutionary process.

Etiology

He focuses his efforts on understanding what are the causes that generate a particular disease.

Entomology

It is a branch of zoology that deals with the specific study of insects. Analyze their structures, their behaviors and the interactions they experience with their environment.

Herpetology

He is dedicated to the study of reptiles and amphibians. It is of interest of this discipline to analyze the taxonomy, geographic distribution, genetics and evolution of these beings through time.

Ichthyology

Ichthyology is a branch of zoology that studies fish. It tests both cartilaginous fish (called chondrichthyans) and skeletal fish (called osteictians).

Mammalogy

This discipline focuses on mammals. It covers aquatic and terrestrial species, and focuses on studying their behavior, organization, evolution and the ways in which their conservation can be promoted.

Ornithology

He is in charge of the study of birds. The studies derived from this branch of science have been decisive to understand evolutionary aspects, such as instinct, speciation and preservation, among others.

Primatology

Science that is responsible for studying primates.

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