Topic 5 - Homeostasis And Response (paper 2) Flashcards
What is homeostasis?
The regulation of internal conditions of a cell or organism to maintain optimum conditions for functions in response to internal and external changes
Why is homeostasis important?
Cells need the right conditions in order to function properly, including the right conditions for enzyme action
What do automatic control systems include?
Nervous responses or chemical responses
What internal conditions are controlled?
Blood glucose concentration, body temperature, water levels
What do all control systems include?
Cells called receptors, which detect stimuli (changes in the environment)
Coordination centre (brain,spinal cord, pancreas) which receive and process information from receptors
Effectors (muscles and glands) which bring about responses that restore optimum levels
What does the nervous system do?
It enables humans to react to their surroundings to coordinate behaviour and respond to stimuli
What does the CNS consist of?
Vertebrates - brain and spinal cord
Mammals - CNS is connected to the body by sensory neurones and motor neurones
How does information from receptors pass along cells?
As electrical impulses to the CNS
What is the function of sensory neurones?
Carrying information as electrical impulses from receptors to the CNS
What are motor neurones?
Neurones that carry electrical impulses from the CNS to effectors
What are effectors?
Muscles and glands which respond to nervous impulses
What are receptors?
Cells that detect stimuli
Examples of receptors?
Taste receptors, ears (sound receptors), light receptors on the retina
What is the path of a reflex arc?
Stimulus
Receptor - eyes, ears
Sensory neurone
Relay neurone - CNS - brain and spinal cord
Motor neurone
Effector - muscles and glands
Response
Why are reflex actions important?
They’re quick, automatic, protective and don’t involve the conscious part of the brain
Examples of reflexes
Sneezing
Blinking when getting dust in your eye
When bright light is shone in your eye, your pupil constricts
Adrenaline is automatically released when you get a shock
Outline the reflex arc for getting stung by a bee
The stimulus (bee sting) is detected by receptors, sending impulses along a sensory neurone to the CNS
Impulses reach a synapse between the sensory neurone and the relay neurone, causing chemicals to be released, these cause impulses to be sent along the relay neurone
Impulses reach a synapse between the relay neurone and the motor neurone, releasing chemicals which cause an impulse to be sent along the motor neurone
Impulses title along the motor neurone to the effector - muscle
The muscle contracts, causing the hand to move away from the bee
What is a synapse?
A gap between neurones
How are signals transferred across synapses?
Electrical impulse travels along neurone A
Neurotransmitter chemical made by neurone A
Neurotransmitter chemical diffuses across the synapse
Neurotransmitter chemical attaches to receptors on neurone B
Neurone B sends electrical impulses
What is negative feedback?
It brings levels in your body back to normal when they are too high or too low
Describe negative feedback for when a level is too high
Receptor detects stimulus - high level
Coordination centre receives and processes the information, then organises a response
Effector produces a response, counteracting the change and then restores the optimum level, decreasing the level
Effectors continue producing responses until they’re not stimulated by the coordination centre. However, the level can change too much, up the receptor detects this and negative feedback starts again
What does the brain control?
Complex behaviours
What is the brain made of?
Billions of interconnected neurones and has different regions that carry out different functions
What’s the function of the cerebral cortex?
Controls memory, language, consciousness, intelligence
What’s the function of the cerebellum?
Fine motor control, coordination, balance
What’s the function of the medulla?
Unconscious activities, like breathing and heart rate
What’s the function of the hypothalamus?
Regulation of body temperature
What are 3 methods for studying the brain?
MRI scanning techniques, studying patients with brain damage, electrically stimulating different parts of the brain
Outline studying patients with brain damage?
Identify the areas of the brain that are damaged and see what abilities or functions are affected
Outline electrically stimulating different parts of the brain?
Use electrodes to stimulate different parts of the brain and observe what effects it has on the patient. Give the patient tasks to do and use PET and MRI scans to see the more active parts of the brain
Outline MRI scans?
Magnetic resonance imaging produces detailed pictures of the brains structures. The patients is given tasks during the scan to find out which areas of the brain are more active
What are the problems associated with studying the brain?
Ethical issues with studying brain damage
Electrical stimulation is risky and can cause brain damage
Scanners are expensive and the patients has to be still
The brain is complex and different parts interact so it’s difficult to get a clear picture
What are the problems with treating the brain?
There’s a wide range of problems that may affect the brain (tumours, infection etc)
The brain is delicate and the skull is fragile
The brain is complex and it’s difficult to produce drugs that reliably work
Pro and cons of MRI scans
Pros - can detect cancer cells, clots and abnormal blood flow, non invasive, no ionising radiation, safer than a CT, safe for pregnant women and babies
Cons - noisy, claustrophobic
Pros and cons of CT scans
Pros - quicker than MRI, accurate diagnosis of many conditions
Cons - ionising radiation risk, dye injection, cancer risk
Pros and cons of EEGs
Pros - safe due to no electricity being put into the body, can detect epilepsy, fits and memory problems, direct feedback from patient
Cons - can’t detect cancer, needs a highly trained expert, risk of brain damage
What is the eye?
A sense organ containing receptors sensitive to light and colour
Function of the retina
Contains light receptor cells sensitive to colour
What two types of receptor cells are in the retina?
Cone and rod cells
Function of the optic nerve
Contains sensory neurones that carry impulses on the receptors on the retina to the brain
Function of the sclera
Tough, supporting wall of the eye
Function of the cornea
Transparent to let light enter the eye. Its curved surface bends the light and focuses it towards the retina
Function of the iris?
Circular muscle that controls the diameter of the pupil and controls how much light reaches the retina
Function of the suspensory ligaments and ciliary muscles
Control and change the shape of the lens
Function of the blind spot
No light sensitive cells so no light falling here is detected
What’s accommodation?
Changing the shape of the lens to focus on near or distant objects
What happens to eye when bright light is detected and why?
Circular muscles contract
Radial muscles relax
Pupil constricts
So less light enters the eye, in order to protect it from
What happens to the eye in dim light?
Circular muscles relax
Radial muscles contract
Pupil dilates
What does the eye do to focus on near objects?
Ciliary muscles contract, suspensory ligaments loosen, lens is thicker and refracts light rays strongly
What does the eye do to focus on distant objects?
Ciliary muscles relax, suspensory ligaments are pulled right, lens is pulled thin and only slightly refracts light rays
What is myopia?
Short sightedness
What is hyperopia?
Long sightedness
What happens when there are defects to the eye?
Rays of light don’t focus on the retina
How does hyperopia occur?
When the lens is the wrong shape and doesn’t refract the light enough and the eyeball is too short. The I,ages are focus are brought into focus behind the retina
What lens can be used to treat hyperopia and how does it work?
A convex lens (curves outwards) and it refracts the light rays so they focus on the retina
How does myopia occur?
When the lens is the wrong shape and refracts the light too much or the eyeball is too long. The images of distant objects are brought into focus in front of the retina
What lens can be used to treat myopia and how does it work?
A concave lens (curves inwards) corrects the eye, so that the light rays focus on the retina
What are the 3 treatments for vision defects?
Contact lenses, laser eye surgery, replacement lens surgery
What are contact lenses?
Thin lenses that sit on the surface of the eye and are shaped to compensate for the fault in focusing. They refract the light onto the retina
What are the pros and cons of contact lenses?
Pros - can’t be seen, lightweight, easier to play sport, soft lenses are more comfortable, hard lenses last a long time
Cons - hard lenses are uncomfortable, have to be sterilised each night, risk of eye infections with soft lenses more so than hard lenses