Lungs and Gases

Cells require oxygen gas to make energy, and the byproduct of making energy is another gas,
carbon dioxide. Oxygen is needed to sustain cells in organs, but carbon dioxide is toxic. These
gases enter and exit the body through the lungs by diffusion. The lung is a network of
branching and narrow tubes that starts at the trachea, or windpipe. At the tip of the narrowest
tubes are grape-like clusters called alveoli. These alveolar sacs are surrounded by a net of small
blood vessels. Oxygen gas diffuses from the alveolar sacs into the blood vessels, while carbon
dioxide goes from the blood into the alveoli.
Kidneys and Wastes
The job of the kidney is to filter out salts and waste products from the bloodstream. These
molecules are collected as urine, which is excreted from the body. The kidney contains many
microscopic filtration systems called nephrons, which are microscopic tubes is shaped like a U.
Each portion of the U diffuses different molecules, such as water and salt. Whatever gets
through the entire U will go into another tube, called the collecting duct, and eventually to the
bladder. The collecting duct is the last chance for the nephron to take water out of urine by
diffusion.
Intestines and Calcium
Calcium ions are essential for nerves to send signals and for skeletal muscles to contract.
Calcium is stored and released from bones, but new calcium must be absorbed from food. The
small intestine is the organ that absorbs new calcium. When calcium levels in the blood are low,
the parathyroid gland releases parathyroid hormone, which causes the bones to release
calcium and causes the small intestine to absorb calcium. The absorption of calcium in the
small intestine is an example of diffusion. Studies have shown that the movement of calcium
into intestinal cells is both passive diffusion, which happens through a protein channel, and
active transport, which happens via pumps that pull in calcium.
Skin and Heat
When a person’s body temperature gets too high, the body needs to release heat. Heat leaves
the body through diffusion, although heat is not a molecule. One way that the human body cools
itself is to sweat. As the water evaporates from the skin, it takes heat with it. The brain also
sends signals to the blood vessels in the skin, causing them to dilate -- or increase in volume.
This allows more blood, which carries body heat, to be at the skin. Sweating and blood vessel
dilation work together to diffuse heat from the body.