The term for the examination of cell structure and function is cytology.
Cytology is also called cell biology or cellular biology. It examines how cells are built, how their organelles work, how cells communicate, divide, use energy, and respond to their surroundings. Modern cytology studies both prokaryotic cells, such as bacteria, and eukaryotic cells, such as plant and animal cells.
The field grew rapidly after Robert Hooke used a microscope to observe cork in 1665 and coined the word “cell,” inspired by the small rooms of a monastery. In the 1830s, Matthias Schleiden and Theodor Schwann helped establish cell theory, which recognizes cells as the fundamental units of living organisms. Rudolf Virchow later added that new cells arise from pre-existing cells.
A common mix-up is microbiology, which focuses on microorganisms; it may use cytological methods but is broader in subject matter. Anatomy studies the structure of whole organisms and their organs, while endocrinology focuses on hormones and endocrine glands. Cytopathology is a narrower medical specialty that uses cell examination to diagnose disease.