Excretory System

Function and Parts

 Why is excretion necessary?
• In order for cells to stay alive, they must
continually take in water and other molecules.
• The cells would continue to get bigger and bigger
if they only took in molecules
• They must also export molecules
– These molecules may be important signaling
molecules such as hormones, or they may be
molecules of glucose on their way to other cells, or
they may be waste products of cellular metabolism
that cells need to dispose.
Structures of the Excretory System
1. Skin
2. Lungs
3. Liver
4. Large intestine
5. Urinary System
 Waste Products
• Carbon dioxide – a waste product of
cellular respiration is dumped into the
blood stream and eventually removed by
the lungs
• Ammonia (NH3) is removed through water
– This waste comes from the cells breakdown of
old proteins
– It is also what makes bleach smell, so in high
concentrations it is poisonous to the cells and
must be removed
 Removal of Ammonia
• Once excreted into the blood stream by
cells, it is carried to the liver where it is
converted from ammonia into urea which
is much less toxic
• It is then carried from the liver to the
kidneys where it is removed
 The Job of the Kidneys
• They are responsible for cleaning the blood
by removing metabolic wastes, excess
solutes, and excess water and excreting
them as urine
• Besides removing urea, it also removes
excess salts or glucose, the remnants of
drugs (reason for urine tests), and excess
water.
 Regulation of Water Levels
• If the blood becomes too dilute or too
concentrated with solutes, then it can interfere
with normal cellular activity. Recall hypertonic,
hypotonic & isotonic solutions!
• The kidneys are able to regulate water
concentration in the blood by removing excess
water if the blood is too dilute or conserving
water in the blood if it is not dilute enough
 The Hard-working Kidneys
• The two kidneys in the body receive
between 1100 – 2000 liters (1160 – 2100
quarts or 500 gallons) of blood per day –
about the volume of a car!
• Because the body has only about 5.6 liters
of blood, your blood runs through the
kidneys to be cleaned about once every
four minutes.
The Urinary System
Kidneys – filter
wastes and excess
water from the
blood.
Ureters – tubes that
take urine from the
kidney to the
urinary bladder.
Urinary Bladder – a
sack that stores
urine.
Urethra – small tube
that leads urine out
of the body.
The Kidney
 Formation of Urine
• If there is too much water in the blood, then it is
removed and put in urine.
• If there is not enough water in the blood, the
kidneys will not remove it.
• If there is too much urea or other solutes in the
blood, the kidneys will remove these excess
solutes.
• By regulating solute numbers and water volume,
the kidneys normally maintain homeostasis in
blood solute concentration.
• Key Points
• Urine color is an indicator for hydration.
• Urine pH is often influenced by diet.
• Urine smell indicates age of the urine and may
indicate the presence of glucose and ketones.
• Urine turbidity may indicate urinary tract
infection or obstruction.
• Urinalysis is the process of analyzing and
detecting chemicals excreted in urine.
• Physical characteristics of urine include color,
smell, pH, density and turbidity
• Abnormal Types of Urine
• There are several conditions that can cause abnormal components to be
excreted in urine or present as abnormal characteristics of urine. They
are mostly referred to by the suffix -uria. Some of the more common
types of abnormal urine include:
• Proteinuria—Protein content in urine, often due to leaky or damaged
glomeruli.
• Oliguria—An abnormally small amount of urine, often due to shock or
kidney damage.
• Polyuria—An abnormally large amount of urine, often caused by
diabetes.
• Dysuria—Painful or uncomfortable urination, often from urinary tract
infections.
• Hematuria—Red blood cells in urine, from infection or injury.
• Glycosuria— Glucose in urine, due to excess plasma glucose in
diabetes, beyond the amount able to be reabsorbed in the proximal
convoluted tubule.
 Maintaining homeostasis
• In an isotonic environment, the relative
concentrations of solute and water are
equal on both sides of the membrane. ... If
placed in a hypotonicsolution, a red blood
cell will bloat up and may explode, while
in a hypertonic solution, it will shrivel—
making the cytoplasm dense and its
contents concentrated—and may die.
 Factors that affect kidney
function
• Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) – prevents excess
water loss from kidneys
• Alcohol – inhibits secretion of ADH = more urine
volume
• Aldosterone – prevents excess loss of sodium and
water from kidneys
• Caffeine – increases rate of salt and water loss
from kidneys
• Increased blood pressure – increase rate of water
loss from kidneys.
 VASOPRESSIN/ ADH
• Antidiuretic hormone, also known
as vasopressin, is a nine amino acid
peptide secreted from the posterior
pituitary. Antidiuretic hormone binds to
receptors in the distal or collecting tubules
of the kidney and promotes reabsorbtion of
water back into the circulation.
 ALDOSTERONE
• Aldosterone, the main mineralocorticoid
hormone, is a steroid hormone produced
by the zona glomerulosa of the adrenal
cortex in the adrenal gland. It is essential
for sodium conservation in the kidney,
salivary glands, sweat glands and colon.
• Aldosterone affects the body's ability to
regulate blood pressure. It sends the signal
to organs, like the kidney and colon, that
can increase the amount of sodium the
body sends into the bloodstream or the
amount of potassium released in the urine.
• If decreased blood pressure is detected, the
adrenal gland is stimulated by these stretch
receptors to release aldosterone, which
increases sodiumreabsorption from the
urine, sweat, and the gut. This causes
increased osmolarity in the extracellular
fluid, which will eventually return blood
pressure toward normal.
 ADH VS. ALDOSTERONE
• Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and
aldosterone are hormones that tell your
kidney to put water back in the blood. ...
Both work in the collecting duct
- ADH causes it to take up water,
whereas aldosterone causes it to take up
salt and, in turn, causes water to follow.
 Na- K Pump
• The process of moving sodium and potassium
ions across the cell membrance is an active
transportprocess involving the hydrolysis of
ATP to provide the necessary energy. It
involves an enzyme referred to as Na +/K+-
ATPase. This process is responsible for
maintaining the large excessof Na+ outside the
cell and the large excess of K+ ions on the
inside.
• A cycle of the transport process is sketched
below. It accomplishes the transport of three
Na+ to the outside of the cell and the transport
of two K+ ions to the inside. This unbalanced
charge transfer contributes to the separation
of charge across the membrane. The sodium-
potassium pump is an important contributer
to action potential produced by nerve cells.
 Summary
Structures Functions
• 2 Kidneys • To remove solid and
• 2 Ureters liquid wastes from
the blood stream.
• 1 Bladder
• 1 Urethra • To reach an isotonic
equilibrium in the
blood.
When good organs go bad…
This is a
cross
section of a
normal
kidney

This is the outside

of a kidney that has
lost blood flow to
the tan area & the
cells have died.
 Career Connection
• What careers can be found relating to the
excretory system?
• Transplant coordinator
• Urologist
• Dermatologist
• Urinalysis Tech