Renal Physiology Exam Questions and Correct Answers Latest Update 2025

Renal Physiology Exam Questions and Correct Answers Latest Update 2025 Out of the 4 hormones the kidney releases, which one is a steroid? Which are proteins? - Answers Calcitriol is the steroid Erythropoeitin, renin, and renalase are the proteins Calcitriol increases the intestinal absorption of ___ and ___ - Answers Ca2+; HPO4 2- What is the stimulus for release of erythropoietin? - Answers Low partial pressure O2 An insufficiency of what hormone will cause normocytic normochromic insufficiencty? - Answers Erythropoietin What 3 things does renin regulate? - Answers Na+ balance K+ balance Blood pressure Renalase breaks down ____________ in the blood - Answers Catecholamines How would deficiency in renalase affect blood pressure? - Answers It would raise it (Catecholamines would not be broken down) What is normal blood osmolarity close to? - Answers 290 mOsm/L What is the apex of the renal medulla called? - Answers Renal papilla The functional unit of the kidney is called the __________ - Answers Nephron What is postrenal azotemia? What can it be caused by? - Answers Accumulation of nitrogenous wastes; can be cause by obstruction of ureters from kidney stones Which part of the kidney has a dense capillary network and high flow rate? Which has a low flow rate? - Answers Cortex; medulla What does the renal corpuscle consist of? (part of the nephron) - Answers Glomerulus Bowman's Capsule What does the renal tubule consist of? (Part of the nephron) - Answers Proximal tubule Loop of Henle Distal Tubule Collecting duct At what point does tubular fluid become urine? - Answers When several collecting ducts join to become the papillary duct Do humans have more juxtamedullary nephrons or cortical nephrons? - Answers Cortical; Juxtamedullary nephrons are helpful in conserving water during dehydration though The efferent arteriole in the cortex gives rise to the ______________; Which vessels only surround juxtamedullary collecting ducts and limbs of Henle's loop? - Answers Peri tubular capillaries; Vasa recta A unique feature of the renal circulation is that it contains ___ capillary beds arranged in series - Answers 2 What is the balance equation? - Answers E = F + S - R What percentage of plasma is filtered in the glomerulus? How much of that is usually excreted after reabsorption has taken place? - Answers 20%; 1% What is plasma? - Answers The aqueous component of blood Plasma occupies ___% of blood volume; the rest is ___ - Answers 55%; the rest is RBCs aka hematocrit What is serum? - Answers Plasma without fibrinogen Out of plasma, interstitial fluid, and intracellular fluid, which one occupies the greatest volume in the human body? - Answers Intracellular fluid (2/3 of total body water) What is the 20, 40, 60 rule? - Answers ECF = 20% ICF = 40% TBW = 60% of body what If you have questions about what it's like to be a scrub, who should you call? - Answers Atif Khan If you have more muscle mass will your ratio of TBW to body weight increase or decrease? - Answers Increase; this is why younger people have a higher ratio than old people What is the major cation in the plasma? What about the second most? - Answers Na+; K+ What is the major cation in the ISF? Second most? - Answers Na+; K+ What is the major cation in the ICF? Second most? - Answers K+; Mg2+ What is the major anion in the plasma? Second most? - Answers Chloride; bicarbonate What is the major anion in the ISF? Second most? - Answers Chloride; Bicarbonate What is the major anion in the ICF? Second most? - Answers Phosphate; Protein Interstitial fluid can be considered a ____ of plasma - Answers Filtrate Renal plasma clearance is the volume of _____ cleared from a substance in a unit of time - Answers Plasma Does renal clearance increase or decrease of reabsorption rises? What about filtration? Secretion? - Answers Decreases if reabsorption rises Increases if filtration and/or secretion rise Which type of cells are in Bowman's capsule? - Answers Parietal epithelial cells (external squamous epithelium) Which 2 types of cells are in the glomerulus? Where are they? - Answers Podocytes - covers glomerular capillaries Endothelial cells - inner lining of the capillaries Which cells are between glomerular capillaries and can contract in response to circulating vasoactive substances impeding glomerular blood flow and filtration? - Answers Mesangial cells In the juxtaglomerular apparatus, what is the function of granular (juxtaglomerula) cells? What is the function of the macula densa? - Answers Granular cells: renin release Macula densa: sensing low flow of filtrate Where do sympathetic nerves project in the glomerular apparatus? What does is stimulate? - Answers Granular and smooth muscle cells; stimulates renin release What 3 layers make up the glomerular filtration barrier? - Answers -Leaky endothelium -Basement membrane (negatively charged glycoproteins) -Podocytes What are the 2 factors that determine the filterability of substances? - Answers Molecular weight Molecular charge (negative means LESS filterable) How much protein should be present in urine? - Answers Only small traces; the small about that gets filtered should be reabsorbed