Test 1 - Renal Physiology Flashcards
What are the structures that make up the urinary system?
- Kidneys
- Ureters
- Urinary Bladder
- Urethra
What components of the urinary system do little to change the volume and composition of urine?
Ureters, urinary bladder, and urethra.
Not physiologically interested in these structures.
What are the functions of the kidney?
- Regulation and maintenance of plasma composition within homeostatic norms. - Trying to make perfect plasma.
- Regulation and maintenance of blood volume and pressure.
- Conversion of 25 hydroxycholecalciferol (exported by the liver) to 1,25 dihydroxycholecalciferol (calcitriol); sometimes referred to as active Vitamin D3) by 1, alpha, hydroxylase
- Catabolism (e.g., of parathyroid hormone)
- Gluconeogenesis
- Synthesis of erythropoietin
- Synthesis of creatine (requires the liver as well)
What mechanisms are used to regulate and maintain plasma composition with homeostatic norms?
- Filtration
- Secretion
- Reabsorption
- Excretion
What are the renal components of volume and pressure homeostasis?
- Juxtaglomerular (JG) cells of the afferent arteriole
- Mesangial cells (myofilamentous, phagocytic cells)
- Podocytes (visceral epithelium of Bowman’s Capsule)
- Renin (a circulating enzyme produced by JG cells)
- Macula densa (cells of the distal tubule)
This is a network of communication that influences how much is secreted/reabsorbed.
What does renal physiology refer to specifically?
ONLY kidney. The majority of the physiology goes on in the kidney. Once the waste product (urine) leaves the kidney, not much is done to change its composition. Since they do not secrete/absorb or change the volume, physiologically we are not interested in them.
At what point of the urinary system is fluid considered to outside the body?
What is this fluid?
As soon as fluid is pushed through the filter and enters Bowman’s space.
This is filtrate of blood.
Kidneys receive close to _____% of total cardiac output even though they constitue only ____% of the total body mass.
20%
0.5%
In what direction does fluid flow?
From high pressure to low pressure. E.g. pressure in bowman’s space is greater than the pressure in the convoluted tubule.
What is the flow of blood through renal vasculature?
Aorta → Renal Artery → Interlobar Artery → Arcuate Artery → Interlobular Artery → Afferent Arteriole → Glomerulus → Efferent Arteriole → Peritubular Capillaries (cortex) → Vasa Recta (medulla) →
Intralobular Vein → Arcuate Vein → Interlobar Vein → Renal Vein → Caudal Vena Cava
What are components of the ductular network?
Glomerular Cabsule (Bowman’s Capsule)
Proximal Tubule
Loop of Henle (Descending Limb, Ascending Limb)
Distal Tubule
Collecting duct (Cortical and medullary)
How often is fluid being filtered through the kidney?
How often is urine being produced?
Blood is always flowing through the kidney, and is therefore, always being filtered.
Urine is being produced all of the time.
Explain the process of emptying the bladder.
This is a reflex.
The bladder fills and causes stretching
Stretching sends a signal to the spinal cord
Subsequent signal is sent to contract the detrusor m.
Internal and external sphinchters need to be working synergistically.
What happens when the urinary sphincters are not working synergistically and how can you treat this?
Urine cannot escape.
Treat with medication.
What structures alter the composition/volume of urine through reabsorption and secretion?
Where in the urinary system are they found?
Proximal Convoluted tubule
Distal Convoluted Tubule
Connecting segment
Loop of Henle
Cortical/medullary ducts
These structures are found in the kidney only!
True/False:
Only waste product escapes through the filter.
FALSE.
Important substances escape as well such as glucose, ions/electrolytes (sodium, chloride, potassium), organic molecules (amino acids, VFAs) etc. If the filter was designed to keep these substances out, then nothing would get out because of size.
Glucose should _______ (always, never, sometimes) be seen in the urine.
NEVER.
If glucose is seen in urine, then something is wrong!
True/False
Cells NEVER get through the filter under normal conditions.
TRUE.
This includes RBCs, WBCs, platelets.
What hapens if an organ does not have blood flowing to it?
- It will not receive the nutrients/oxygen to perform its job
- It will collect waste and die from toxicity
True/False.
Renal perfusion varies with cardiac output. That is, if cardiac output increases, they receive more blood and if it decreases they receive less blood proportionally.
FALSE.
Kidneys want 20% of the NORMAL cardiac output. If cardiac output increases/decreases, they will receive 20% of the original amount. Or at least try their hardest to. This is because the kidneys have a lot of work to do ALL OF THE TIME and needs to do it aerobically. It does increase, but the autoregulation of the kidney blunts the effects.
Since the kidney is receiving 20% of CO, what does this say about the functions of the kidney?
This means that the functions of the kidney require a lot of energy. However, not all of the functions require the same amount of energy.
A dog gets hit by a car and is hemorrhaging. What happens to
- Blood Pressure
- Cardiac Output
- Oxygen/nutrient delivery to tissues
- Waste at tissues
What are the measures of compensation?
- Decreases
- Decreases
- Decreases
- Increases
Compensation
- clot begins
- Stimulation of erythropoiesis
- increase thirst to increase blood volume through Angiotensin II
- ADH release - water retention
What happens during renal shutdown?
No urine is being produced. This is ALWAYS alarming. Once urine starts to be produced, then the blood volume and blood pressure have increased.
What are components of Blood Pressure?
Heart Rate
Contractility
Tone of the Vessels
Blood Volume - if there is no blood, there is no pressure.
**These vary to maintain homeostasis. If all are correct then there is normal blood pressure.

