Regulating internal

environment

By Siti Normaidah Hassan

 What is Internal environment?

Consist of:
• interstitial fluid and blood plasma
• interstitial fill the space between the cells
and bathes the cells
•Exchanges nutrients and waste substance
with the blood plasma in blood capillaries
 Homeostasis of Body Fluids
• Separation of fluid compartments
– intracellular fluid (ICF) = within cells =
cytoplasm
– extracellular fluid (ECF) = outside cells
• intercellular fluid = tissue fluid =
interstitial fluid
• plasma = fluid portion of blood
2 major factors that affecting internal
environment:
• Physical factor: temperature, osmotic
pressure and blood pressure
• Chemical factor: Ph, blood glucose and salt
concentration

There is a mechanism that helps to regulates

the physical and chemical factors in internal
environment which is:
 Homeostasis

Maintenance of a constant internal environment

in the body to makes the body function
efficiently.
How is this (homeostasis) controlled?
 Rise above Corrective
normal value Mechanism negative
feedback

NEGATIVE
normal normal
value FEEDBACK value
MECHANISM
negative
Fall below Corrective feedback
normal value Mechanism
Components of Feedback Loop
• Receptor
– Detect changes/stimulus to be
sent to control center
• Control center
– determines next
action/interprete the
information
• Effector
– receives information from the
control center
– produces a response that
changes the controlled condition
Eg. Homeostasis of Blood Pressure
• Pressure receptors in walls of certain
arteries detect an increase in BP
– blood Pressure = force of blood on
walls of vessels
• Brain receives input and signals heart
and blood vessels
• Heart rate slows and arterioles dilate
(increase in diameter)
• BP returns to normal
Homeostasis of body temperature
 Hair follicle Sebaceous Erector muscle Receptors Outermost
gland layer

Middle layer
Epidermis

Innermost
Dermis layer

Sweat gland

Subcutaneous fat
Blood capillaries
Nerve fibres

Structure of Mammalian Skin

Response when the body temperature rise:
• blood vessel dilate to increase heat loss
• Sweat glands secrete more sweat to cool the
body by evaporation
• Hair erector muscles relax to flatten hair , to
reduce insulation
• The thyroid gland less stimulates to lower
metabolic rate
Result: the body temperature is back to normal

The opposite mechanism occurs on a cold day

Homeostasis blood glucose level
 Pancreas
secretes
insulin
Liver
Too coverts Blood glucose
Soon
after a
High glucose to level falls
meal glycogen

normal blood normal blood

glucose level glucose level
Pancreas
Long secretes less
after a Liver
insulin
meal Too converts
Low Blood glucose
glycogen to
level rises
glucose
 Osmoregulation
(Water & Mineral salts)

• Regulate water potential in

Tissue Fluid
• Organ involved: KIDNEYS
 Osmoregulation
(Water & Mineral salts)

• After having a very salty meal

 produce concentrated urine to remove
excess salts in solution form
 extra water is needed to be excreted along
with the excess salts
 sensation of thirst (drink more water to
compensate for the water loss)
 After Sweating

Concentrated
Blood Concentrated
Normal Water Urine is
Content in Blood produced

Larger
proportion of
water is
reabsorbed
 Importance for the body to maintain internal environment?

• To react with the effect of changes in external

environment around them

• To enable them to live in wider range of habitats

• Physiological and metabolic activities can still

continue even the external environment
fluctuates substantially