Our Lady of Fatima University

College of Arts and Sciences

Natural Science Department
GZOO111 LABORATORY

EXERCISE NO. 15
THE URINARY STRUCTURES
The urinary system is composed of the kidneys, ureters, urinary bladder, urethra, and associated
structures. The functions of the urinary system include maintaining extracellular fluid balance, excreting
wastes, and maintaining blood pH

I. Objective:
 Identify the major organs of the urinary system and find them in model or charts
 Describe the gross anatomical features of the kidney and identify them in figures,
models and specimens.
 Describe the features of the nephron and locate them in figures and models

II. Materials:
 Atlas of human anatomy
 Anatomy and physiology book
 Dissectible models of kidney

III. Procedure:

A. The Kidney model

 Locate these features of the human kidney on a model or chart of a frontal section

1. Locate the hilum and renal capsule from this perspective

2. Identify these structures located just within the hilum:

 Renal sinus – a fat filled cavity
 Renal pelvis – a wide section of the urinary channel, distal to the ureters
 Calyces – branches of the pelvis, they extend from the kidney tissue proper

3. The kidney tissue proper is divided into an outer cortex and an inner medulla, as is the tissue
of many organs. Renal pyramids are cone shaped sections of tissue lying mostly within the
medulla. Each appears as a triangle in a frontal section. Each is composed of collecting ducts
that conduct urine toward the papilla, which is surrounded by the end of calyx.

B. The Nephron model

1. Locate the main features of the nephron and associated structures in a model or chart.
 Renal corpuscle
 Proximal convulated tubule
 Loop of Henle
 Distal convulated tubule
 URINARY SYSTEM

1. Illustrate and Label all the organs of the urinary system

2. Illustrate and label all the parts of the Kidney (Frontal section)

3. Illustrate and Label all the parts of a nephron:

IV. A. Questions:
(Use another sheet of paper for your answer)

1. Name the structures that make up the urinary system. List the functions of the urinary system

 Kidney - The kidneys' job is to filter your blood. They remove wastes, control the body's fluid
balance, and keep the right levels of electrolytes. All of the blood in your body passes through
them several times a day.

 Ureter - duct that transmits urine from the kidney to the bladder

 Urinary bladder - The urinary bladder is a hollow elastic organ that functions as the body’s urine
storage tank before passing into the urethra and exiting the body

 Urethra - are pelvic urinary organs whose respective functions are to store and expel urine
outside of the body in the act of micturition (urination).

2. What structures that surround the kidney?

 Fibrous capsule
 Perirenal fat
 Renal fascia with posterior and anterior layers
 Pararenal fat
 Renal capsule

3. What is the functional unit of the kidney? Name its parts

 nephron

4. What are the functions of the ureters, urinary bladder, and urethra? Describe their structure.
 Ureters – transmit urine from kidney to urinary bladder (Each ureter is a narrow tube that is
about 12 inches (30 cm) long. A ureter has thick contractile walls, and its diameter varies
considerably at different points along its length. The tube emerges from each kidney, descends
behind the abdominal cavity, and opens into the bladder )

 Urinary bladder – is a storage tank of the urine and the bladder is about the size and shape of a
pear when it’s empty the bladder is lined by layers of muscle tissue that stretch to hold urine.
The normal capacity of the bladder is 400-600 mL.
 Urethra - is a tube that connects the urinary bladder to the external urethral orifice, which is the
opening of the urethra on the surface of the body. The urethra in males travels through
the penis, so it is much longer than the urethra in females. In males, the urethra averages
about8 inch long, whereas in females it averages only about 1.5 inch long. In males, the urethra
carries semen as well as urine, but in females, it carries only urine.

5. Name and describe the three general processes that are involved in the production of urine.

B. Put in order:
 Arrange the following structures in the order in which substances flow through urinary
system, beginning with the site of filtration:

A. ascending limb of the loop of henle

B. Bowman’s capsule
C. calyces
D. collecting duct
E. descending limb of the loop of henle
F. distal convoluted tubule
G. proximal convoluted tubule
H. renal pelvis
I. ureters
J. urethra
K. urinary bladder

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