Physiology Flashcards
What is osmolarity?
Concentrated solution of osmotically active particles present in a solution
What are the units used for osmolarity?
osmol/l or mosmol/l
What needs to be known to calculate osmolarity?
Molar concentration of the solution and the number of osmotically active particles present
e.g.
150mM NaCl (150mmol/l)
No. of osmotically active particles = 2 (Na + Cl-)
Osmolarity = 2x150 = 300 mosmol/l
What is the difference between osmolality and osmolarity?
Osmolality has units of osmol/kg water
Osmolarity has units of osmol/l
For weak salt solutions (incl. body fluids) these 2 terms are interchangable
What is the osmolarity of body fluids?
300 mosmol/l
What is tonicity?
Effect a solution has on cell volume
Can be hypo, hyper and iso tonic
What is an isotonic solution?
No change in cell volume (no net movement of water)
What is a hypotonic solution?
More water; dilute salt solution
Increase in cell volume due to movement of water via osmosis from the ECF to the ICF
What is a hypertonic solution?
Less water; concentrated salt solution
Decrease in cell volume, cell losing fluid via osmosis from the ICF to the ECF
What, aside from the salt concentrations, has an impact on osmolarity?
Ability of a solute to cross the cell membrane
What percentage of the body weight is due to total body water in males and females?
Males - 60%
Females - 50% (due to more fat present)
What are the 2 compartments to total body water?
ICF (67% of TBW)
ECF (33% of TBW)
What is included in the extracellular fluid?
Plasma
Interstitial fluid
Lymph and transcellular fluid (negligible)
How can body fluid compartments be measured?
Tracers to obtain the distribution volume of a tracer
What are useful tracers?
TBW: 3H20
ECF: Inulin
Plasma: labelled albumin
How is the volume of distribution measured?
V (litres) = dose (D) / sample concentration (C)
How much fluid intake is there of a given day?
2500 ml
How much fluid is lost per day and where from?
Insensible: skin (350), lungs (350)
Sensible loss: sweat (100), faeces (200), urine (1500)
TOTAL: 2500
How is water imbalance manifested?
Body fluid osmolarity
What is the ionic composition of the ICF?
Sodium: 10
Potassium: 140
Chloride: 7
HCO3-: 10
What is the ionic composition of the ECF?
Sodium: 140
Potassium: 4.5
Chloride: 115
HCO3-: 28
What is fluid shift?
Movement of water between the ICF and ECF in response to an osmotic gradient
What would happen if the osmotic concentration of the ECF increases?
ICF will lose water to ECF to maintain fluid balance
What would happen if the osmotic concentration of the ECF decreases?
ICF will gain water from the ECF to maintain the fluid balance
What will happen if there is a gain or loss of NaCl?
Change in fluid osmolarity - Na+ excluded from ICF, causing osmotic water movements
What will happen if there is a gain or loss of isotonic fluid (0.9% NaCl)?
No change in fluid osmolarity
Change in ECF volume only
What organ alters the composition and volume of the ECF?
Kidneys
Why is electrolyte balance important?
Total electrolyte concentrations can directly affect water balance (via changes in osmolarity)
The concentrations of individual electrolytes can affect cell function
Describe sodium balance?
> 90% of the osmotic concentration of the ECF results from the presence of sodium salts
The total amount in the ECF represents a balance between 2 factors (input and output)
Sodium is mainly present in ECF - major determinant of ECF volume - water follows salt
VITAL to regulate Na+
Describe potassium balance?
Minor fluctuations in plasma potassium can have detrimental consequences
Potassium plays a key role in establishing membrane potential
>9% of K+ is ICF, small leakages can lead to paralysis and cardiac arrhythmias
K+ plasma must be closely monitored and regulated
What are the functions of the kidney?
Water and salt balance Maintenance of plasma volume Maintenance of plasma osmolarity Acid-base balance Excretion of metabolic waste products Excretion of exogenous foreign compounds Secretion of renin Secretion of erythropoietin Conversion of vitamin D to active form (calcitrol)
What are the functional mechanisms of the nephron?
Filtration
Reabsorption
Secretion
Describe the blood supply to the nephron
Renal artery Afferent arteriole Glomerulus at the bowman's capsule Efferent arteriole Peritubular capillaries Venule Renal vein
What are the 2 different types of nephron?
Juxtamedullary - has vasa recta instead of peritubular capillaries
Cortical - smaller loop of helne
What makes up the glomerular membrane?
Endothelial cells
Basement membrane
Podocyte foot processes
What do the granular cells within the juxtaglomerular apparatus produce?
Produce and secrete renin
What is the function of the macula densa cells?
Salt sensitive cells, monitor salt levels in the tubular fluid passing through the juxtaglomerular apparatus
How much of plasma that enters the glomerulus is initially filtered to the kidney tubule?
20%
How is the rate of excretion calculated?
[X[ urine X Vu (Vu is urine production rate)
How is the rate of filtration calculated?
[x]plasma x GFR
What is the GFR of a normal, healthy kidney?
125 ml/min
How is the rate of reabsorption of a substance calculated?
Rate of filtration - rate of excretion
How is the rate of secretion calculated?
Rate of excretion - rate of filtration
How is GFR calculated?
Kf x net filtration pressure (Kf = filtration coefficient of glomerular membrane)
Why is the basement membrane of the glomerulus negatively charged?
To repel the negatively charged plasma proteins, they will therefore stay in the capillary and will not filter through
What are the forces that comprise net filtration pressure?
Glomerular capillary blood pressure
Bowman’s capsule hydrostatic (fluid) pressure
Capillary oncotic pressure
Bowman’s capsule oncotic pressure
What force does glomerular capillary blood pressure exert?
55 mmHg into the bowman’s capsule
What force does bowman’s capsule hydrostatic pressure exert?
15 mmHg into the capillary
What force does the capillary oncotic pressure exert?
30 mmHg into the capillary
What force does bowman’s capsule oncotic pressure exert?
0 mmHg into the bowman/s capsule
What are starling forces?
Balance of hydrostatic pressure and osmotic forces
What is the net filtration rate of a normal kidney?
10 mmHg, pushes fluid and small molecules to form the initial tubular fluid
What force has the largest impact on the net filtration rate and subsequent GFR?
Glomerular capillary BP
How does the glomerular capillary BP remain constant along the length of the capillary?
Due to the larger diameter of the afferent arteriole compared to the efferent arteriole
What is oncotic pressure?
Plasma proteins that will drug fluid along with it
What is the GFR?
The rate at which protein free plasma is filtered from the glomeruli into the bowman’s capsule per unit time
What is the extrinsic regulation of the GFR?
Sympathetic control via baroreceptor reflex
What is the intric regulation of the GFR?
Myogenic mechanism
Tubuloglomerular feedback mechanism
Describe the direct effect of arterial BP on GFR
Increased arterial BP increases blood flow into the glomerulus
Increased glomerular capillary BP
Increased net filtration pressure
Increased net filtration pressure
How will vasoconstriction and vasodilation affect GFR?
Vasoconstriction will reduce GFR
Vasodilation will increased GFR`
How is renal blood flow and GFR protected from changes in MABP?
Intrinsic (autoregulation) factors
Helps to prevent unwanted shifts in salt
What is the myogenic autoregulation?
If vascular smooth muscle is stretched (i.e. arterial pressure is increased), it contracts thus constricting the arteriole
What is the tubuloglomerular feedback autoregulation?
Involves the juxtaglomerular apparatus via macula densa cells whereby if GFR rises, and subsequently there is a rise in NaCl flowing through the tubule, there will be a constriction of the afferent arterioles
Describe what occurs to GFR in the case of a kidney stone
Increased bowman’s capsule fluid pressure, leading to a decreased GFR
Describe what occurs to GFR in the case of diarrhoea?
Increased capillary oncotic pressure due to a loss of water but not proteins, leading to a decreased GFR
Describe what occurs to GFR in the case of severe burns
Decreased capillary oncotic pressure due to a loss of plasma proteins, resulting in an increased GFR
What is plasma clearance
A measure of how effectively the kidneys can clean the blood of a substance
Equals the volume of plasma completely cleared of a particular substance per minute
How is clearance calculated?
[X] urine x V urine / [X] plasma
What unit is used in the clearance of a substance?
ml/min
Describe the properties of inulin
Freely filtered at the glomerulus Neither absorbed nor secreted Not metabolised by the kidney Not toxic Easily measured in urine and blood