Principles of homeostasis Flashcards
What is homeostasis?
Maintenance of an internal environment within restricted limits in organisms
What reasons is homeostasis important for functioning of an organism?
Enzymes sensitive to changes in temp and pH
Changes to water potential of blood and tissue fluid can cause cells to shrink and expand
Organisms who can maintain constant temp are largely affected by external environmental conditions
What are the stages of any self regulating control mechanism?
Optimum point
Receptor - detects deviation from optimum
Coordinator - coordinates information from receptors and sends to effector
Effector - muscle or gland that brings the change
Feedback mechanism - Receptor responds to stimulus brought about by effector
What is the internal environment made up of?
Tissue fluids
