URINARY SYSTEM

FUNCTIONS
• Regulate blood volume
– Therefore blood pressure
– By regulating how much water we reabsorb,
we regulate blood volume

• Regulate blood chemistry

– By regulating what chemicals we reabsorb,
and what we secrete, we regulate blood
chemistry
 GROSS ANATOMY
• Kidneys (x2)
– make urine
• Ureters (x2)
– transport urine
• Urinary bladder
– store urine
• Urethra
– transport urine
KIDNEY LOCATION
 KIDNEY ANATOMY
• Cortex
– solid outer layer
– contains the functional
units of the kidneys

• Medulla
– contains renal pyramids
– looks striped due to
collecting ducts

• Renal pelvis
– collects all of the urine
from the collecting ducts
– turns into the ureter
HIGHLY VASCULARIZED
 NEPHRON
• Functional units of
the kidney

• Over a million in
each kidney

• Found mainly in the

cortex
 NEPHRON
• Glomerulus
• Bowman’s capsule
• Proximal convoluted
tubule
• Descending loop of Henle
• Ascending loop of Henle
• Distal convoluted tubule
• Collecting duct
• Peritubular Capillaries
 GLOMERULUS AND
BOWMANS CAPSULE
• High blood pressure
in capillaries of
glormerulus force
water and solutes into
bowmans capsule

• Site of filtration
FILTRATION
 URINE FORMATION
• FILTRATION
– NON-SELECTIVE; PASSIVE
– EVERYTHING EXCEPT
BLOOD CELLS AND
PROTEINS

• REABSORPTION
– WATER; GLUCOSE; AMINO
ACIDS; IONS
– SELECTIVE
– MOSTLY ACTIVE
TRANSPORT

• SECRETION
– ACTIVE TRANSPORT
– SELECTIVE
 URINE COMPOSITION
• 95% Water
• 5% Solutes
– Nitrogenous wastes
• Urea (CH4N2O)
• uric acid (C5H4N4O3)
• Creatinine (C4H7N3O)
– Other solutes
• na+; k+; etc.

• pH 4.5-8.0

• Clear to pale yellow

 URETERS
• Slender tubes

• 25-30 cm

• Carry urine from the

kidneys to the urinary
bladder
 URINARY BLADDER
• Posterior to the pubic
symphysis

• Smooth, collapsible,
muscular sac

• Temporary storage of
urine

• Lined with
___________________
epithelium?
 URETHRA
• Carries urine from the
bladder to the
_____________!

• 4 cm in females, 20 cm in
males

• Internal urethral sphincter

– bladder/ urethra junction
– involuntary

• External urethral
sphincter
– voluntary
 MICTURITION
• Once bladder fills with about 200ml of urine,
smooth muscle begins to contract and releases
urine through the internal urethral sphincter
• Pressure on the external urethral sphincter
produces the urge to urinate
• If urination does not occur in 2-3 minutes, smooth
muscles cease contracting.
• After another 200ml in the bladder smooth muscle
around bladder again begins to contract.
• When it is convenient, the person relaxes their
external urethral sphincter and urination occurs
 DIURETICS
• Osmotic:
– anything that increases filtrate
osmolarity increases urine output.
why?

• Caffiene:
– inhibits renal sodium reabsorption

• Alcohol:
– inhibits antidiuretic hormone
release