Renal Physiology Flashcards
What are the functions of the kidneys?
Regulates blood volume and pressure
Maintaining pH
Excrete urea, uric acid, creatinine, bilirubin, and removal of foreign chemicals
Synthesizes glucose
Secretes EPO, renin, and 1,25-dihydroxy Vitamin D
Why do fluid volume changes occur?
During various health disorders
By rapid movement of water (osmosis)
Where is 40% of the body’s water content found?
Intracellular fluid
Where is 20% of the body’s water content found?
Interstitial fluid
What fluid compartment do the kidneys regulate?
Extracellular fluid
- fluid outside of cell
- plasma
- interstitial fluid
- CSF
What fluid compartment is [Na+] higher?
Extracellular fluid compartment
What fluid compartment is [K+] higher?
Intracellular fluid compartment
What fluid compartment is [Cl-] higher?
Extracellular fluid compartment
What fluid compartment is [HCO3-] higher?
Extracellular fluid compartment
What fluid compartment is [PO4-] higher?
Intracellular fluid compartment
What are aquaporins?
Water channels
What is water concentration measured in?
Osmoles = 1 osm is equal to 1 mole of solute particles
What is osmolarity?
Number of solutes per unit volume of solution expressed in moles per litre
What is the water concentration when there is low osmolarity?
High water concentration
What is the water concentration when there is high osmolarity?
Low water concentration
What is osmosis?
Net diffusion of water across a selectively permeable membrane from a region of high water concentration to one with a lower water concentration
What is osmotic pressure?
The pressure necessary to prevent solvent movement (osmosis)
What is tonicity?
Determined by the concentration of non-penetrating solutes of an extracellular solution relative to the intracellular environment of the cell
The solute concentration may influence changes in cell volume
What does isotonic mean?
Same osmolarity inside and outside of the cell
What does hypertonic mean?
Higher osmolarity outside than inside of the cell
What does hypotonic mean?
Lower osmolarity outside than inside of the cell
Which way does water flow?
From low osmolarity to high osmolarity
What is absorption?
Movement of solute/water into the blood (plasma)
What is filtration?
Movement of solute/water out of the blood (plasma)
What happens when the net filtration is positive?
Favours filtration
What happens when the net filtration is negative?
Favours absorption
What is homeostasis?
The total body balance of any substance
What are the associated organs in the urinary system?
Ureters
Bladder
Urethra
Where is the location of the kidneys?
Retroperitoneal
What is the function of the ureters?
Drain the formed urine from the kidneys and empty it into the bladder
What is the function of the bladder?
Stores urine and empties out of the body via the urethra
What is micturition?
Urination
What is the nephron?
The functional unit of the kidneys
What are the parts of the nephron?
Renal Corpuscle
Renal tubule
What is the renal corpuscle composed of?
Glomerulus
Bowman’s capsule
What are the parts of the renal tubule?
Proximal convoluted tubule
Loop of Henle
Distal convoluted tubule
Collecting ducts
What is the proximal convoluted tubule?
Close to the renal corpuscle
Twisted
What is the loop of Henle?
Divided into the descending limb and ascending limb
What is the distal convoluted tubule?
Far away from the renal corpuscle
Drains its contents into the main tube called the collecting duct
What is the collecting duct?
Nephrons drain into the collecting ducts which collect all formed processed contents and empty into the renal pelvis of the kidney
What does the renal corpuscle do?
The initial blood filtering component
Blood enters from the afferent arteriole and leaves through the efferent arteriole
What does Bowman’s capsule do?
The filtrate enters Bowman’s space once the blood has been filtered
Has podocytes that come in contact with the glomerulus
Has epithelial cell layer that continues on to form the tubule
How is the renal corpuscle developed?
Step 1: nephrons develop as blind-ended tubules composed of a single layer of simple epithelium
Step 2: A growing tuft of capillaries penetrate the expanded end of the tubules
-epithelial layer differentiates into the parietal and visceral layers
Step 3: Parietal layer eventually flattens to become the wall of Bowman’s capsule, the visceral layer becomes podocyte layer
What are the 3 layers of the glomerular capillary?
Endothelial layer
Basement membrane
Podocytes with filtration slits
Where are all renal corpuscles found?
In the cortex
What are the two types of nephrons?
Cortical
Juxtamedullary
What are cortical nephrons?
Do basic functions (filtration, reabsorption, secretion)
Most of the nephron is found in the cortex
What are juxtamedullary nephrons?
Do basic functions, regulate the concentration of urine
The renal corpuscle is found in the cortex closer to the medulla, the loop of Henle and the ascending limb are found in the renal medulla
What are the 3 types of capillaries around the nephron?
Glomerular
Peritubular
Vasa recta
Where are vasa recta capillaries found?
Mostly associated with juxtamedullary nephrons in the medullary portion of the kidney
What are the 3 basic renal processes?
Glomerular filtration
Tubular secretion
Tubular reabsorption
What is glomerular filtration?
Fluid in the blood is filtered across the capillaries of the glomerulus and into Bowman’s space
What is tubular reabsorption?
The movement of a substance from inside the tubule into the blood
What is tubular secretion?
Movement of nonfiltered substances from the capillaries into the tubular lumen
What is the amount excreted equal to?
Amount filtered + amount secreted - amount reabsorbed
What can’t move out of the glomerular capillaries into Bowman’s space
Large proteins and albumin
Why?
pores are not large enough and the pores and basement membrane have negative charges and repel negatively charged proteins
What is filtered through the glomerulus?
Water, electrolytes, glucose, amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, waste products (urea, uric acid, creatinine)
What is ultrafiltrate?
The concentration of substrate filtered through the filtration layers is the same in plasma and in the filtrate
cell-free fluid
What is proteinuria?
A condition where some of the proteins that are not supposed to pass through the filtration barrier show up in the filtrate and ultimately in the urine
Is the net glomerular filtration pressure always positive or negative?
Positive
How does glomerular filtration pressure initiate urine formation?
By forcing protein-free filtrate from plasma out of the glomerulus and into Bowman’s space
What forces favour filtration?
Glomerular capillary blood pressure
What forces oppose filtration?
Fluid pressure in Bowman’s space
Osmotic force due to protein in plasma
What factor would contribute to an increase in the glomerular filtration rate?
High blood pressure
What factor would contribute to a decrease in the glomerular filtration rate?
An increase in the protein concentration in the plasma would increase the protein content in the glomerular capillaries, decreasing the glomerular filtration rate
What is the fraction of the volume entering the glomerular capillaries that are filtered?
20%
What is the final volume of fluid that is excreted?
1%
What is the definition of glomerular filtration rate?
The volume of fluid filtered from the glomerulus into the Bowman’s space per unit time
How much GF happens per day?
180 L/day
Rate is not fixed
What are some factors influencing GFR?
Net glomerular filtration pressure
Neural and endocrine control
Permeability of the corpuscular membrane
Surface area available for filtration
What is GFR autoregulation?
GFR remains fairly constant despite large changes in arterial pressure or renal blood flow
Regulated by changes in the myogenic reflex
Occurs by changing renal blood vessel resistance to compensate for any changes in pressure
How is a constant GFR rate maintained?
Autoregulation of GFR takes place over a wide range of blood pressures
How does constriction of the afferent arteriole affect the GFR?
Constriction increases resistance to flow through the afferent arteriole
Renal blood flow to the glomerulus has decreased due to an increase in the resistance in the afferent arteriole
A decrease in renal blood flow reduces the hydrostatic pressure of the glomerular capillary resulting in a decrease in GFR
What are the 4 scenarios that alter GFR?
Constrict afferent arterioles
Constrict efferent arterioles
Dilate efferent arterioles
Dilate afferent arterioles
What 2 scenarios decrease GFR?
Constricting the afferent arteriole
Dilating the efferent arteriole
What 2 scenarios increase GFR?
Constricting the efferent arteriole
Dilating the afferent arteriole
How is GFR regulated?
Myogenic response
Hormones and autonomic neurons
Tubuloglomerular feedback
What is the juxtaglomerular apparatus?
A specialized structure formed by the distal convoluted tubule and the glomerular afferent arteriole
What are the 3 types of cells that control the GFR?
Macula densa
Juxtaglomerular cells
Mesangial cells
What is the macula densa?
Cells on the wall of the distal tubule
Can sense increase fluid flow through the distal tubule
Secretes vasoactive compounds
Changes afferent arteriole resistance and signals to JG cells
What are juxtaglomerular cells?
On the wall of the afferent arteriole
Secrete renin which controls afferent arteriole resistance
What are the mesangial cells?
Not part of the JGA
Contraction of these cells reduces surface area of the glomerular capillaries so GFR is reduced
What is the filtered load?
The total amount of non-protein or non-protein bound substance filtered into Bowman’s space
What is the filtered load equation?
GFR x [substance in plasma]
What happens when the substance excreted in urine is less than the filtered load?
Reabsorption occurs
What happens when the substance excreted in urine is greater than the filtered load
Secretion occurs
What are the 3 ways that the renal system handles different substances?
Filtration + secretion
Filtration + partial reabsorption
Filtration + complete reabsorption
How are inulin and creatinine handled by the renal system?
Filtration only - what is filtered is excreted completely in the urine
No secretion or reabsorption
How are electrolytes handled by the renal system?
Filtered and partially reabsorbed
How are glucose and amino acids handled by the renal system?
Filtered and completely reabsorbed
How are organic acids and bases handled by the renal system?
Filtered and secreted
The substance is completely secreted in urine