Physiology Flashcards
What is normal serum K level?
3.5-5.0 mEq/L
What percentage of K is located in ICF vs ECF? What accounts for the difference?
- 98% intracellularly (80% muscle cells); 2% extracellularly
- mainly due to Na/K ATPase and NKCC2 channels
What is hypokalemia and what causes it?
Effect on resting membrane potential?
- Plasma K < 3.7 mEq/L
- due to vomiting/diarrhea, insulin excess, K deficiency, and alkalosis
- hyperpolarizes membrane -> RMP more negative -> harder to excite
What is hyperkalemia and what causes it?
Effect on resting membrane potential?
- plasma K > 5.2 mEq/L
- due to excessive intake, tissue release/damage, acidosis, insulin deficiency
- hypopolarizes membrane -> RMP less negative -> easier to excite
What is pseudohyperkalemia?
artificially high plasma K due to lysis of RBCs during blood draw
What effect do hyper and hypokalemia have on the heart?
- opposite other tissues
- hypokalemia: tachycardia
- hyperkalemia: bradycardia
What effect do Epi have on K? Why does this make sense?
- lowers serum K by uptake into extrarenal tissues and stimulating K excretion by kidneys
- hypokalemia causes tachycardia (Epi has a sympathetic effect on HR)
What effect does insulin have on serum K?
lower serum K by stimulating Na/K ATPase to bring K into cells and release Na
What effect does aldosterone have on K?
Renal: increases K excretion
Extrarenal: increase K secretion into intestinal fluid and saliva
What effect does acidosis have on serum K?
increases serum K through inhibition of Na/K ATPase (cells will intake H+ to increase pH and remove K)
What effect does alkalosis have on serum K?
lowers serum K (cells will release H+ to decrease pH and intake K)
What effect does hyperosmolarity have on serum K?
increases serum K due to contraction of ICF volume -> fluid enters ECF and K follows
How do you calculate GFR? How do you calculate Puf?
GFR = (Kf)(Puf) Puf = Pgc - Pbc - Pigc
How do you calculate renal clearance? In what circumstances is this equal to GFR?
Renal Clearance = (Ux)(V)/(Px)
equal to GFR when substance is freely filtered (inulin and creatine)
How do you calculate filtered load?
Filtered load = (Px)(GFR)(% filterability)
What is reabsorbed in the PCT?
water, Na, K, Cl, HCO3, Ca, Pi, and all glucose and AA
What is the major mechanism of the PCT?
Na/K ATPase in basolateral membrane
What drives K reabsorption in the late PT?
lumen-positive transepithelial difference (TEPD) -> build up of positive charge in lumen -> like repels like -> K is pushed out
How do you develop a positive TEPD in the PCT?
Na reabsorbed in early PT (Na/K ATPase) -> Cl left behind -> negative TEPD builds up -> Cl repelled and reabsorbed -> positive TEPD builds up -> K repelled and reabsorbed
What secretes and reabsorbs K in the LoH and collecting ducts?
- K reabsorbed by medullary collecting duct
- K secreted into late PT and descending thin limb of LoH
- K secreted into cortical collecting duct
What is the goal of K medullary recycling?
- increase presence of medullary K which decreases NKCC2 reabsorption in thick ascending limb -> increased Na to distal tubule -> stimulates Na reabsorption and K secretion
- overall goal is to excrete more K
What do principal cells and B-intercalated cells do w/ K? How does each do it?
- secrete K
- principal cells through ROMK (renal outer medullary K channels) and BK channels
- B-intercalated cells through K/H exchanger on basolateral membrane (brings K inside cell from blood and flows down concentration gradient)
What factors stimulate K secretion in the collecting duct?
- increased ECF K concentration
- aldosterone
- increased tubular flow rate
What do A-intercalated cells do w/ K? How?
reabsorb K through K/H exchanger on apical membrane (brings K into cell from lumen)
What factors stimulate K reabsorption in the collecting duct?
K deficiency, hypokalemia, loss of K through severe diarrhea
How does tubular flow rate effect K secretion by principal cells in the collecting duct?
- increased flow rate enhances K secretion -> dilutes K in lumen -> larger concentration gradient -> principal cells secrete more K
- decreased flow rate slows K secretion -> K concentration builds up earlier -> concentration gradient decreases -> principal cells secrete less K
How do high Na intake and high tubular flow rates counterbalance each other?
- high Na -> low aldosterone (want to reabsorb less salt) -> inhibits secretion of K
- high Na -> increased GFR and decreased Na reabsorption in PT -> increased DT flow rate -> increased K secretion
- allows person to eat lots of Na w/o becoming hypokalemic
How does chronic acidosis differ from acute acidosis on K?
- Acute acidosis decreases Na/K ATP activity and decreases K secretion (hyperkalemia)
- Chronic acidosis stimulates K secretion b/c over time, decreased K secretion leads to increased K concentration -> increased aldosterone -> increased Na/K ATPase and increased secretion
What effect does ADH have on K secretion?
increased K secretion via Na reabsorption
What effect do diuretics have on K secretion?
Diuretics that inhibit Na reabsorption will promote K secretion (except K-sparing) -> increased Na to distal tubule which promotes K secretion
How much Ca is adequate per day? How is the majority of ingested Ca lost?
1000mg/day; majority is lost through feces
What is total plasma Ca levels? Where is 99% of Ca stored?
- 5.0 mEq/L
- in bones
What causes hypocalcemia and what effect does it have on neuromuscular excitability?
- caused by hypoparathyroidism, renal disease, and vitamin D deficiency
- shifts membrane potential to a less positive value -> increases excitability
What causes hypercalcemia and what effect does it have on neuromuscular excitability?
- caused by primary hyperparathyroidism or malignancy
- shifts membrane potential to a more positive value -> depresses excitability
What are 3 regulators of Ca levels?
PTH, calcitonin, and calcitriol
What percentage of serum Ca is diffusible through the glomerulus (non-protein bound)?
60%
What do Ca and H compete for?
binding sites on plasma albumin
How do hypoalbuminemia and hyperalbuminemia affect plasma Ca levels?
- hypoalbuminemia increases plasma Ca -> less albumin to bind to
- hyperalbuminemia lower plasma Ca -> more albumin to bind to
How do acidosis and alkalosis affect free Ca in circulation?
- Acidosis increases free Ca -> hydrogen beats Ca in binding to albumin
- alkalosis decreases free Ca -> more Ca bound to albumin
What is another name for calcitriol? What is its function and overall effect?
Vitamin D; works w/ PTH to resorb bone (stimulates osteoclasts)
Overall effect: increases serum Ca and Pi
What effect does calcitriol have on bone, intestine, and kidney?
- Bone: promotes bone resorption
- Intestine: increases Ca and Pi absorption
- Kidney: increases Pi and Ca reabsorption
What stimulates calcitonin? What is its overall effect?
- stimulated by hypercalcemia
- Overall effect: decrease serum Ca and Pi concentrations
What effect does calcitonin have on bone and kidneys?
- Bone: inhibits resorption (decreases activity and # of osteoclasts)
- Kidney: promotes Pi and Ca excretion
What is the overall effect of PTH?
Increases serum Ca and decreases serum Pi
What effect does PTH have on bone, intestine,and kidney?
- Bone: increases resorption
- Intestine: increases Ca/Pi absorption via calcitriol production
- Kidney: increase Ca reabsorption in DCT; decrease Pi reabsorption in PCT
What is the function of the calcium sensing receptor (CaSR)?
monitors Ca levels in the blood and inhibits Ca reabsorption in the thick ascending limb when plasma Ca is high (activated on basolateral membrane and inhibits NKCC2 receptor on apical membrane)
How much is Ca reabsorbed in the PT and how?
65-70%; mostly passive (follows Na and water reabsorption) and paracellular
What drives Ca reabsorption in the thick ascending limb? What stimulates and inhibits Ca reabsorption?
- driven by positive lumen voltage (TEPD)
- promoted by ADH
- inhibited by CaSR
How much is Ca reabsorbed in the DT and how?
8%; active transport
What channels are used to reabsorb Ca in the DT?
renal epithelial Ca channel (TRPV5) brings Ca into cell from tubular lumen; Ca crosses basolateral membrane via Na-Ca exchanger (NCE)
What stimulates Ca reabsorption in the DT?
PTH and calcitriol
What is the purpose of calbindin?
Ca binding protein when Ca is intracellular b/c excessive intracellular Ca would cause apoptosis
What effect does academia have on Ca excretion? Why does this make sense?
increases Ca excretion (inhibits TPRV5); less Ca bound to albumin (hypercalcemia)
What effect does alkalemia have on Ca excretion? Why does this make sense?
decreases Ca excretion (stimulates TPRV5); more Ca bound to albumin (hypocalcemia)
What is recommended daily intake of Pi? How much is actually absorbed?
1500mg/ day; only about 900mg would be absorbed
What are the 4 regulators of Pi Metabolism?
dietary phosphate intake, calcitriol, PTH, and renal tubular reabsorption of Pi
Is Pi freely filtered at the glomerulus?
Yes; filterability is 1.0
How is Pi reabsorbed in the early and late PT?
through the Na-Pi symporter (moreso in the late PT); Pi crosses basolateral membrane by an unknown transporter
How does FGF-23 affect Pi reabsorption
decreases it
Where is Vitamin D converted from its inactive form to active form? What enzyme is involved?
converted in the the PT by renal 1a-hydroxylase
What upregulates and inhibits renal 1a-hydroxylase?
- unregulated by low Ca, low phosphate and high PTH
- inhibited by high Ca (more specifically by CaSR)
What effect does PTH have on serum Pi? How does it do this?
- lowers it by increasing renal excretion
- inhibits Na-Pi symporter and Na-H antiporter in apical membrane of PT cells