Homeostasis Flashcards
Cells function most efficiently if
they are kept in near optimum conditions
What are the conditions maintained in mammals
-core temperature
-metabolic waste (eg. carbon dioxide and urea)
-blood pH
-blood glucose concentration
-blood water potential
-concentration of the respiratory gases (carbon dioxide and oxygen) in the blood
Homeostasis
The regulation of the internal conditions of a cell or organism to maintain optimum conditions for function, in response to internal and external changes
Why is homeostasis important
it ensures the maintenance of optimal conditions for enzyme action and cell function
Negative feedback control loops involve
-A receptor (or sensor) – to detect a stimulus that is involved with a condition / physiological factor
-A coordination system (nervous system and endocrine system) – to transfer information between different parts of the body
-An effector (muscles and glands) – to carry out a response
Negative feedback loop
1) receptor detects a stimulus that is involved with the condition/physiological factor
2) receptor sends information through the nervous system to central control in the brain or spinal cord
3) central control instructs an effector to carry out an action
4) the factor (stimulus) is continuously monitored by receptors so that it fluctuates around a set point or ideal value
The outcome of a negative feedback loop
-The factor / stimulus is continuously monitored
-If there is an increase in the factor, the body responds to make the factor decrease
-If there is a decrease in the factor, the body responds to make the factor increase
Internal stimuli
are factors located inside the body that are detected and cause a response
External stimuli
-includes touch and pain, vision, smell, taste, sound, and balance (equilibrium).
-these sensory stimuli are activated by external changes
receptors
detects a stimulus that is involved with the condition/physiological factor
The two different coordination systems that homeostasis relies on in mammals
-Nervous system – information is transmitted as electrical impulses that travel along neurones
-Endocrine system – information is transmitted as chemical messengers called hormones that travel in the blood
nervous system is usually required for
fast, but short-lived responses
the endocrine system is result in
slower, but longer-lasting responses (although this is not always the case and some hormones can act very quickly)
effector
a tissue or organ that carries out an action in response to a stimulus; muscles and glands are effectors
corrective action
a response or series of responses that return a physiological factor to the set point so maintaining a constant environment for the cells within the body
set point
the ideal value of a physiological factor that the body controls in homeostasis
excretion
The removal of the waste products produced by the many metabolic reactions that occur within the body
Urea is produced in the
liver
Urea is produced from
excess ammino acids
deamination
the removal of amino group from each amino acid to access the useful energy still present in the protein
process of deamination
-The amino group (-NH2) of an amino acid is removed, together with an extra hydrogen atom
-These combine to form ammonia (NH3)
-The remaining keto acid may enter the Krebs cycle to be respired, be converted to glucose, or converted to glycogen/fat for storage
How is ammonia really damaging
-Ammonia is a very soluble and highly toxic compound
-It dissolves in the blood to form alkaline ammonium hydroxide, disrupting blood pH
-It can impact the reactions of cell metabolism such as respiration
-It interferes with cell signalling processes
How and why is ammonia converted to urea
Ammonia is combined with carbon dioxide to form urea
2NH3 + CO2 = CO(NH2)2 + H2O
Urea is less soluble and less toxic than ammonia
The two functions of kidney
-As an osmoregulatory organ - they regulate the water content of the blood (vital for maintaining blood pressure)
-As an excretory organ - they excrete the toxic waste products of metabolism (such as urea) and substances in excess of requirements (such as salts)
The function of renal artery
carries oxygenated blood (containing urea and salts) to the kidneys
The function of renal vein
carries deoxygenated blood (that has had urea and excess salts removed) away from the kidneys
The function of the ureter
carries urine from a kidney to the bladder
the function of the bladder
stores urine (temporarily)
the function of the urethra
releases the urine outside of the body
what is the fibrous capsule
a fairly tough outer layer that surrounds the kidney
Three main areas beneath the fibrous capsule
-The cortex (contains the glomerulus, as well as the Bowman’s capsule, proximal convoluted tubule, and distal convoluted tubule of the nephrons)
-The medulla (contains the loop of Henle and collecting duct of the nephrons)
-The renal pelvis (where the ureter joins the kidney)
nephrons
-thousands of tiny tubes that each kidney contains
-the structural and functional unit of the kidney composed of Bowman’s capsule and a tubule divided into three regions: proximal convoluted tubule, loop of Henle and distal convoluted tubule
Bowman’s capsule
the cup-shaped part of a nephron that surrounds a glomerulus and collects filtrate from the blood
glomerulus
-a group of capillaries within the ‘cup’ of a Bowman’s capsule in the cortex of the kidney
-Each glomerulus is supplied with blood by an afferent arteriole (which carries blood from the renal artery)
-The capillaries of the glomerulus rejoin to form an efferent arteriole
proximal convoluted tubule
part of the nephron that leads from Bowman’s capsule to the loop of Henle
loop of Henle
the part of the nephron between the proximal and distal convoluted tubules
distal convoluted tubule
part of the nephron that leads from the loop of Henle to the collecting duct
collecting duct
tube in the medulla of the kidney that carries urine from the distal convoluted tubules of many nephrons to the renal pelvis
The two stages involved in the formation of urine in nephron
- Ultrafiltration
- Selective reabsorption
Where ultrafiltration occurs
Bowman’s capsule
Where selective reabsorption occurs
proximal convoluted tubule