本教材延续了第1版的特色，按照国内组织学与胚胎学教学大纲要求，修订的改编教材内容和结构与教育部规划教材保持一致，同时语言尽量做到原汁原味。在组织学部分，考虑学科发展，主要根据McGraw Hill教育出版公司出版的第13版Junqueira's Basic Histology对教材内容做了较大幅度更新，并参考多本组织学英文原版教材补充丰富了部分内容。
本版教材均为彩色插图，插图质量明显提升。其中组织学部分的插图基本选自原版教材，少数由编委提供。胚胎学部分的插图亦改绘为彩色插图，部分插图由编委自己设计并绘制。

CHAPTER 1 HISTOLOGY & ITS METHODS OF STUDY
1 PREPARATION OF TISSUES FOR STUDY
2 LIGHT MICROSCOPY
3 ELECTRON MICROSCOPY
4 CELL & TISSUE CULTURE
5 HISTOCHEMISTRY
6 VISUALIZING SPECIFIC MOLECULES
7 INTERPRETATION OF STRUCTURES IN TISSUE SECTIONS
CHAPTER 2 EPITHELIAL TISSUE
1 COVERING EPITHELIA
2 SECRETORY EPITHELIA & GLANDS
3 CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF EPITHELIAL CELLS
CHAPTER 3 CONNECTIVE TISSUE PROPER
1 LOOSE CONNECTIVE TISSUE
2 DENSE CONNECTIVE TISSUE
3 ADIPOSE TISSUE
4 RETICULAR TISSUE
CHAPTER 4 CARTILAGE AND BONE
1 CARTILAGE
2 BONE
CHAPTER 5 BLOOD AND HEMOPOIESIS
1 BLOOD CELLS
2 HEMOPOIESIS
CHAPTER 6 MUSCLE TISSUE
1 SKELETAL MUSCLE
2 CARDIAC MUSCLE
3 SMOOTH MUSCLE
CHAPTER 7 NERVE TISSUE
1 NEURON
2 SYNAPSE
3 GLIAL CELLS
4 NERVE FIBERS AND NERVES
5 NERVE ENDINGS
6 NEURAL PLASTICITY & REGENERATION
CHAPTER 8 THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
1 CEREBRAL CORTEX
2 CEREBELLAR CORTEX
3 SPINAL CORD
4 GANGLIA
5 MENINGES
6 BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER
7 CHOROID PLEXUS AND CEREBROSPINAL FLUID
CHAPTER 9 THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
1 HEART
2 TISSUES OF THE VASCULAR WALL
3 ARTERIES
4 CAPILLARY
5 VEINS
6 LYMPHATIC VASCULAR SYSTEM
CHAPTER 10 THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
1 INNATE AND ADAPTIVE IMMUNITY
2 CELLS OF ADAPTIVE IMMUNITY
3 LYMPHOID ORGANS
4 MUCOSA-ASSOCIATED LYMPHOID TISSUE
CHAPTER 11 SKIN
1 EPIDERMIS
2 DERMIS
3 SUBCUTANEOUS TISSUE
4 SENSORY RECEPTORS
5 HAIR
6 SKIN GLANDS
7 NAILS
CHAPTER 12 EYE AND EAR
1 EYE
2 EAR
CHAPTER 13 ENDOCRINE GLANDS
1 PITUITARY GLAND (HYPOPHYSIS)
2 ADRENAL GLANDS
3 THYROID GLAND
4 PARATHYROID GLANDS
5 PINEAL GLAND
6 DIFFUSE NEUROENDOCRINE SYSTEM
CHAPTER 14 DIGESTIVE TRACT
1 GENERAL STRUCTURE OF THE DIGESTIVE TRACT
2 ORAL CAVITY
3 ESOPHAGUS
4 STOMACH
5 SMALL INTESTINE
6 LARGE INTESTINE
CHAPTER 15 ORGANS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DIGESTIVE TRACT
1 SALIVARY GLANDS
2 PANCREAS
3 LIVER
4 BILIARY TRACT & GALLBLADDER
CHAPTER 16 THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
1 NASAL CAVITIES
2 NASOPHARYNX
3 LARYNX
4 TRACHEA
5 BRONCHIAL TREE & LUNG
6 LUNG VASCULATURE & NERVES
7 PLEURAL MEMBRANES
CHAPTER 17 URINARY SYSTEM
1 KIDNEYS
2 URETERS, BLADDER, & URETHRA
CHAPTER 18 THE MALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
1 TESTES
2 GENITAL DUCTS
3 ACCESSORY GLANDS
4 PENIS
CHAPTER 19 THE FEMALE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM
1 OVARIES
2 UTERINE TUBES
3 UTERUS
4 CERVIX
5 VAGINA
6 MAMMARY GLANDS
CHAPTER 20 INTRODUCTION TO EMBRYOLOGY
1 SUBDIVISIONS OF THE PRENATAL PERIOD
2 BRANCHES OF EMBRYOLOGY
3 A BRIEF HISTORY OF EMBRYOLOGY
4 SIGNIFICANCE OF EMBRYOLOGY
CHAPTER 21 GENERAL EMBRYOLOGY
1 GAMETOGENESIS AND FERTILIZATION
2 FORMATION OF THE BLASTULA AND IMPLANTATION
3 DEVELOPMENT OF GERM LAYERS
4 DIFFERENTIATION OF THREE GERM LAYERS AND FOLDING OF THE EMBRYO
5 FETAL MEMBRANES AND PLACENTA
6 TWINS, MULTIPLE BIRTHS, CONJOINED TWINS
7 ESTIMATION OF AGE AND METHODS OF MEASURING EMBRYOS
CHAPTER 22 DEVELOPMENT OF THE HEAD, NECK AND LIMBS
1 EARLY ORGANIZATON OF THE HEAD AND NECK REGION
2 EVOLUTION OF THE BRANCHIAL ARCHES, BRANCHIAL CLEFTS, AND PHARYNGEAL POUCHES
3 DEVELOPMENT OF THE TONGUE
4 DEVELOPMENT OF THE THYROID GLAND
5 DEVELOPMENT OF THE SALIVARY GLANDS
6 FORMATION OF THE FACE, JAWS, AND NASAL CHAMBERS
7 DEVELOPMENT OF THE PALATE
8 DEVELOPMENT OF TEETH
9 LIMB DEVELOPMENT
10 COMMON MALFORMATIONS OF THE FACE, NECK, AND LIMBS
CHAPTER 23 DEVELOPMENT OF THE DIGESTIVE AND RESPIRATORY SYSTEMS
1 DEVELOPMENT OF ESOPHAGUS
2 DEVELOPMENT OF STOMACH
3 DEVELOPMENT OF INTESTINES
4 DEVELOPMENT OF LIVER, GALLBLADDER AND PANCREAS
5 MALFORMATIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
6 DEVELOPMENT OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
7 DEVELOPMENT OF LARYNX AND TRACHEA