Look to the cell!

The body can only do what any individual cell can do!

When confronted with a physiologic problem, it is the usual response of the young clinical student to want to describe it in a global sense. For example, the effect of alcohol on muscular control and coordination are attributed to "cerebellar dysfunction". Sounds classy! But in fact, the question is HOW is the cerebellum in turn "messed up"? The answer lies at the cell level. Alcohol poisons(interferes with the normal functioning of) the cell membrane via the Na/K pump; this in turn stops any cell exposed to alcohol to be unable to "do its thing." Nerves don't fire properly, muscles don't contract properly, liver cells can't do their job, etc. So, in the end, if you can describe the cellular anomaly you can generalize to all tissues that are exposed to the assault, be it chemical, infectious, or genetic. Our body works on fairly simple general cellular biological principles, and the clinician who masters THESE can understand and even describe almost anything that happens at the macrophysiologic level!.
Keep it simple!