Kidney Structure and Function Flashcards
kidneys
excretory organs that process and filter the blood and rid the body of metabolic waste via urine
hilum
point at kidneys where many structures e.g arteries, veins etc enter and leave
what are the kidneys encased in
renal fat pad
what are the 3 distinct parts of the kidneys
cortex (contains 85% of nephrons)
medulla - triangles
pelvis (where urine is collected)
describe the pathway of blood through the kidneys starting with the abdominal aorta and ending at the interlobular veins
abdominal aorta - renal artery - interlobular arteries - afferent arteriole - glomerular capillary - efferent arteriole - peritubular capillaries - interlobular veins
what makes kidney vascalature unique
they have 2 lots of capillaries
cortical nephron
majority, short loop of henle, located in the kidney cortex
juxtamedullary nephron
long loops of henle, near medulla, specialised for water absorption
describe the pathway of the filtrate as it moves through the kidney
glomerulus - bowmans capsule - proximal convuluted tubule - loop of henle - distal convoluted tubule - collecting duct
what does the renal corpuscle consist of and what is its function
glomerulus and bowmans capsule
filtration and removal
what does the renal tubule consist of and what is its function
prox conv tubule, loop of henle, dist conv tubule
resorption, secretion (fine tuning)
glomerulus
network of capillaries that filters the blood
bowmans capsule
double layered structure that surrounds the glomerulus and collects filtrate
layers of bowmans capsule
outer layer - parietal
inner layer - visceral - made up of podocytes which have long processes called pedicels which wrap around glomerular capillaries
hydrostatic pressure in the glomerulus
afferent arteriole wider than efferent meaning molecules and fluid are pushed through the filtration barrier
