Start of Unit 4a. - correct answer ✔✔This was named for the sweet taste of the urine, and how it would
attract flies. Think miel-honey.
Diabetes Insipidus - correct answer ✔✔This was named for the tasteless or bland nature of the urine.
Roles of the Kidney - correct answer ✔✔This has lots of roles including:
-regulation of ECF volume and bp
-regulates plasma osmolarity in part by integrating function w/ behaviour
-regulate the ion balance
-regulate the plasma pH
-excretion of waste
-production of hormones (EPO, renin..)
Endogenous Waste - correct answer ✔✔This is waste that is dealt w/ by the kidney that is a product of
our metabolism, commonly a nitrogenous product.
Exogenous Waste - correct answer ✔✔These are waste products from outside our body such as drugs
and environmenal toxins.
Erythropoietin (EPO) - correct answer ✔✔This is a hormone type substance produced in the kidney in
response to low oxygen.
Renin - correct answer ✔✔This is a part of the endocrine cascade that regulates Na+.
Renal Artery - correct answer ✔✔This is an artery through which about a quarter of all the blood
pumped by the heart is sent to the kidney, clearly an important organ.
,Ureter - correct answer ✔✔This dumps into the bladder from the kidneys.
Nephrons - correct answer ✔✔These are the functional units of the kidneys and are present in the
millions. Their job is to decide what the constitution of the fluid that reaches the renal pelvis is. These
are typically restricted to the cortex but can be deeper in the medulla too.
Cortical Nephron - correct answer ✔✔These are the nephrons that are primarily in the cortex, these are
our focus.
These have a shorter bulge then their counterparts. After the bulge of the Bowman's capsule the first
round of twists and turns is the proximal tubule, Then it dives down and climbs up to form the Loop of
Henle b/w the descending and ascending loop. next we come to the distal convoluted tubule.
Juxtamedullary Nephron - correct answer ✔✔These are the nephrons that are longer and extend down
into the medulla.
This is where concentration of urine is accomplished - high osmolarity of medullary interstium allows
urine to become concentrated as it flows through collecting duct.
Renal Pelvis - correct answer ✔✔Once urine reaches here it is drained into the bladder where it awaits
secretion. By this point the urine has undergone all of its processing and can not be altered further by
the body.
Cortex - correct answer ✔✔This is the exterior tissue in the kidney which contains all the Bowman's
capsules, proximal and distal tubules of the nephrons.
This is iso-osmotic to plasma, here the fluid is not very concentrated.
Medulla - correct answer ✔✔This is the inner tissue layer inside the cortex which contains the loops of
Henle as well as the collecting ducts of the nephrons.
This is increasing the concentration of the tubular fluid as you go down deeper. The further we go down
the saltier and saltier we get.
Collecting Ducts - correct answer ✔✔These are the large tubules of the nephron that dump into the
renal pelvis.
,They are a site of secretion from the blood to the lumen as well as reabsorption from the lumen to the
blood (particularly in the top half).
By this point 90% of the filtration has already been done.
Tubular Elements of the Nephron - correct answer ✔✔There is the renal corpuscle composed of the
glomerulus and Bowman's capsule, then the proximal tubule, the descending loop of Henle, the loop of
Henle, the ascending loop, the distal tubules, the collecting duct and this heads to the bladder.
Vascular Elements of the Nephron - correct answer ✔✔The venous portal system is unique in that it has
two capillary beds and it goes from:
The afferent arterial goes to the glomerulus containing the glomerulus capillaries which heads next to
the efferent arterioles and then the peritubular capillaries.
Afferent Arterioles - correct answer ✔✔These are the arterioles that carry blood to the glomerulus and
into the Bowman's capsule. When there is increased BP they will constrict to increase the resistance
and .: decrease the blood flow, the Ph and the GFR in order to maintain the optimal GFR in the nephrons.
Glomerulus Capillaries - correct answer ✔✔These are the capillaries in the Bowman's capsule b/w the
afferent and efferent arterioles.
Efferent Arterioles - correct answer ✔✔These are the arterioles which carry blood from the glomerulus
to the peritubular capillaries.
Peritubular Capillaries - correct answer ✔✔This is the point in the vascular elements of the nephron
where solutes from the filtrate are reabsorbed back into the blood.
Renal Portal System - correct answer ✔✔This is one of only three portal systems in the body ad it
contains two capillary beds - glomerulus capillaries and peritubular capillaries.
Renal Corpuscles - correct answer ✔✔This is the start of the nephron in the kidney which is composed of
the glomerulus and the Bowman's capsule which surrounds it.
This is where filtration of the blood occurs.
Proximal Tubule - correct answer ✔✔This is a major site of reabsorption and it is right near the
glomerulus, hence its name. At this point the volume has gone down by 70% already as it is reabsorbed,
and this is not regulated but rather is osmotic b/c it takes up everything equally. This occurs by iso-
osmotic reabsorption. Na+ is unregulated and water follows by osmosis.
Descending Loop/Limb of Henle - correct answer ✔✔This is a site of reabsorption from the lumen of the
tubules into the blood.
Loop of Henle - correct answer ✔✔This is a site of reabsorption from the lumen of the tubules into the
blood.
Ascending Loop/Limb of Henle - correct answer ✔✔This is hypo-osmotic relative to the plasma and by
this point 90% of the original filtrate has been reabsorbed.
25% of Na and K are reabsorbed in the thick part of the ascending limb and it creates a salt gradient for
the collecting duct.
Distal tubule - correct answer ✔✔This is a site of reabsorption from the lumen of the tubules into the
blood, as well as a site of secretion from the blood to the lumen.
This is where you can adjust the volume, this is where the hormones work.
This is often the difference b/w life and death and this is the small tweaking at the end. This is where we
fine tune the water/salt balance by endocrine control.
Contains ENaC and ROMK channels for modulating Na+ and K+ as well as aqua porins and ATPase pumps.
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