THE EXCRETORY SYSTEM

DEFINITIONS
Excretion- is the process of getting rid of the body’s metabolic
wastes including water

Excretory system- handle these processes & also rid of the body of
excess water from dietary intake, excess ions & harmful
substances
- helps maintain homeostasis by selectively adjusting the
concentration of salts & other substances in blood & other body
fluids
Overview:
Collect blood or interstitial fluid adjust concentration

release excess or toxic substances

 PRINCIPAL WASTE PRODUCTS OF
ANIMAL METABOLISM
 Water
 Carbon dioxide
 Nitrogenous wastes – ammonia, urea, uric acid
 OSMOREGULATION
 The active regulation of osmotic pressure of body fluids to
keep them from becoming too dilute or too concentrated

Osmotic conformers –marine invertebrates

Osmotic regulators – coastal habitats (eg. Estuaries)
less stable environment
 INVERTEBRATE MECHANISM OF
OSMOREGULATION & EXCRETION
1. Nephridial organ – simple or branching tubules
open to outside of the body thru excretory pores
(nephridiophores)

a) Protonephridia – composed of tubules w/ no

internal openings
- in flatworms

b) Metanephridia- composed of tubules open at

both ends
- most annelid & mollusks
2. Malpighian tubules - in
insects & spiders

3. Antennal (green) glands –

in some crustaceans ( eg.
Crayfish)
Maxillary glands – in crabs
, shrimps
VERTEBRATE EXCRETORY SYSTEM
 KIDNEY
- the key vertebrate organ for osmoregulation & excretion
eg. Kangaroo- very efficient kidneys in order to conserve water (losses very little
fluid as urine)

a) Reptiles & birds – also have salt glands in head

b) Freshwater vertebrates/fishes –excrete large quantities of urine & absorb salts (by
active transport) thru gills

c) Marine fishes – losses water by osmosis

- to compensate drinks water, excretes salts & produce little urine

Shark – accumulates urea high enough concentration so that becomes hypertonic to the
surrounding env’t ---water enters by osmosis--- large amount of hypotonic urine is
excreted

d) Amphibians – kidney same as in freshwater; also thru skin & urinary bladder
 KIDNEY
Functions:
 Filter blood
 Reabsorb nutrients
 excrete metabolic wastes
 regulate the fluid & electrolyte balance of the body
 Site for production of rennin & erythroprotein

Also called:
Metanephros – in mammals
Mesonephros - in amphibians

- each is composed of uriniferous tubules ( composed of nephron

& collecting ducts)
 STRUCTURE OF THE KIDNEY
Two major layers:
1) Cortex – outer region, dark, & grainy appearing

Contains the Nephrons consisting of the following:

Nephron – the functional unit of the kidney

a) Renal corpuscles –consist of a tuff of capillaries called glomerulus

covered by a Bowman’s capsule or renal capsule ( a layer of simple
squamous epithelium) = collectively called the Malpighian body or
renal corpuscle that function for blood filtration (filtering unit of a
nephron)
b) Renal tubules- exhibit u-shaped, rounded, elongated structures
line with simple cuboidal epithelium
3 Main Regions:
1. proximal convoluted tubule – conducts the filtrate from
the Bowman’s capsule

2. Loop of Henle/Loop of nephron – u-shaped tubule that

conducts filtrate from the proximal to the distal convoluted
tubules; where reabsorption of water & ions takes place

3. distal convoluted tubules – conducts filtrate to a

collecting duct; where secretion of waste products takes place
2. Medulla – inner region, light-staining, striated appearing
Consists of:
straight tubular portions of nephron & collecting
ducts where the filtrate passes thru to the ureter

- urine flows out from the kidney to the ureter thru the
renal pelvis
 PASSAGE OF FILTRATE &
FLOW OF URINE
Proximal Distal
Bowman’s Loop of Collecting
convoluted convoluted
capsule Henle duct
tubule tubule

URETERS
(MESONEPHRIC
DUCT IN FROG)

URINARY
BLADDER

OUTSIDE
OF THE URETHRA
BODY

CLOACA IN
FROG
 RENAL CIRCULATION
Blood
from Arteriole ( by
aorta rejoining of Bowman’s
Renal
(1.2L or artery glomeruli capsule
¼ of capillaries)
cardiac
output)

peritubular
capillaries

Posterior
Renal Renal
vena
vein venules
cava
PROCESS OF URINE FORMATION
1) Filtration – takes place in the renal corpuscle or Malpighian body
- nonselective with regard to small molecules

2) Reabsorption- permits precise regulation of blood chemistry by the

kidneys
- needed substances (eg. glucose & amino acids) are
returned into the blood
- 99% of the filtrate reabsorbed; 1.5L to be excreted as
urine in 24hr period
- occurs mostly in the Loop of Henle

3) Secretion – of K, H and NH4 ions, drugs

- occurs mainly in the distal convoluted tubule
- secretion of ions occurs by active transport