Introduction to Human Physiology

For
Second year BSc Midwifery
By : Yibeltal Y. (MSc)
Department of Medical Physiology
yibeltalyismaw7@gmai.com

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Presentation Outline
 Introduction
 Homeostasis
 Control systems
 Control mechanisms
 Negative feedback control systems
 Positive feedback mechanisms

 Intracellular communication

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Objectives
At the end of this chapter the students will be able to:
1. Define physiology
2. Explain homeostasis
3. Discuss negative & positive feed back mechanism
4. Describe intercellular communication

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Introduction
What is Physiology?
 Physiology is the science that seeks to explain the
physical and chemical mechanisms that are responsible
for the origin, development, and progression of life.
 Each type of life, from the simplest virus to the largest
complicated human being, has its own functional
characteristics.
 Therefore, the vast field of physiology can be divided
into
 viral physiology, bacterial physiology, cellular
physiology, plant physiology, invertebrate physiology,
vertebrate physiology, mammalian physiology, human
physiology, and many more subdivisions.

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 Introduction…
 Cell is the basic structural & functional unit of life
 100 trillions of cells all working together for the
maintenance of the entire human organism
 bathed with the fluid that is called ECF
 About 60 percent of the adult human body is fluid
 mainly a water solution of ions and other
substances
 Most of this fluid is inside the cells
 intracellular fluid two-third
 One third is in the spaces outside the cells
 extracellular fluid
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Body fluid

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 Body fluid
 Extracellular fluid is in constant motion throughout the
body
 It is transported rapidly in the circulating blood and then
mixed between the blood and the tissue fluids by diffusion
through the capillary walls
 In the extracellular fluid are the ions and nutrients needed
by the cells to maintain life
 While cells may perform very different functions, all the
cells are quite similar in their metabolic requirements:
 oxygen, glucose, mineral ions, waste removal …
 All cells live in essentially the same environment the
extracellular fluid

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INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT cont’d…
 For this reason, the extracellular fluid is also called the
internal environment of the body, or the milieu
intérieur, a term introduced by the great 19th-century
French physiologist Claude Bernard (1813–1878)
 Cells are capable of living and performing their special
functions as long as
 the proper concentrations of gases ,oxygen, glucose,
different ions, amino acids, fatty substances, hormones,
enzymes, water & electrolytes and other constituents are
available in this internal environment.
 Therefore Maintaining a nearly constant internal
environment is necessary for the well-being of
individual cells & the well-being of the entire body

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Differences Between Extracellular and
Intracellular Fluids
 Extracellular fluid contains large amounts of
 sodium, chloride, and bicarbonate ions plus
 nutrients for the cells, such as oxygen, glucose, fatty
acids, and amino acids
 It also contains
 carbon dioxide and cellular waste products

 Intracellular fluid it contains

 large amounts of potassium, magnesium, and
phosphate ions
 Special mechanisms for transporting ions through the
cell membranes maintain the ion concentration
differences between the extracellular and intracellular
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fluids
 Homeostasis
 It is maintenance of nearly static or constant
conditions in the internal environment (ECF)
 All organs of the body perform their functions to
maintain constant conditions in the ECF
For example
 Lungs maintain the normal concentration of
respiratory gases in blood
 The CVS transports required substances and
removes waste produces
 The kidneys maintain constant ionic concentration
and
 The GIT provides nutrients
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Normal values & ranges of some important
parameters that have to be maintained
 Body fluid volume = 42 L
• Intracellular fluid (ICF) = 28 L
• Extracellular fluid (ECF) = 14 L
 Interstitial fluid = 11 L
 Plasma fluid =3L
 Osmolality = 300 mosm/L (285 – 300 mosm/L)
 Body Temperature = 36.3 – 37.1OC
 PH = 7.35 – 7.45

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 Normal values & ranges...cont’d
 Blood Gases
PCO2 = 35 – 45 mm Hg
PO2 = 40 – 104 mm Hg
 Waste Products
 Creatinine (s) = 0.6 – 1.5 mg/dL
 Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) = 8 – 25 mg/dL
 Uric acid (s) = 2.3 – 6.6 mg/dL
 Blood Glucose level (fasting) =70 –110 mg/dL

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 Normal values & ranges...cont’d
 Arterial Blood pressure (systemic circulation).
 Systolic pressure =120 mmHg (90-140 mmHg)
 Diastolic pressure = 80 mmHg (60-90 mmHg)
 Pulmonary AP = 25 /10 mmHg
 Cardiac output = 5 L/min
 Blood Flow = 5 L /min
 RBC count = 4-6 millions/mm3
 WBC count = 4,000-11,000/mm3
 Platelets count = 250,000-500,000/mm3

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Normal values of ECF & ICF

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 Disturbances of homeostasis

 Deviations from normal ranges = PATHOLOGY

 Hypo/ Hyperthermia ….. ↓or↑ Temperature
 Hypo/ Hypercapnea ….. ↓or↑ PCO2
 Acidosis/Alkalosis ….. ↓or↑ PH
 Hypoxia/ Hyperoxia …. ↓or↑ PO2
 Hypo/ Hypercalcemia …. ↓or↑ Ca 2+
 Hypo/ Hyperglycemia … ↓or↑ Glucose

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 Homeostasis cont’d…
 Homeostasis in a general sense refers to:
 stability, balance or equilibrium.
 Maintaining a stable internal environment requires
constant monitoring & adjustments as conditions
change.
 Adjustment of physiological systems within the
body is called homeostatic regulation; which
involves 3 parts or mechanisms:
 receptor, control centre & effector

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 Homeostasis…cont’d

1. Receptor
 receives information that something in the
environment is changing
2. Control center or integration center
 receives & processes information from the receptor
3. Effector
 responds to the commands of the control center by
either opposing or enhancing the stimulus
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 Homeostasis…cont’d
 Homeostatic regulation is an ongoing process that
continually works to restore & maintain homeostasis.
For example
 in regulating body temperature there are
temperature receptors in the skin,
 which communicate information to the brain, which
is the control center, and
 the effector is our blood vessels and sweat glands.
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Homeostatic ….
Input: Output:
4
3 Information sent
Control Information sent along
along afferent center efferent pathway to
pathway to

Receptor (sensor) Effector

Change Response of effector feeds

2 5
detected back to influence
by receptor magnitude of stimulus and
returns variable to
homeostasis
Stimulus:
1 Produces
change
in variable Variable (in homeostasis)

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Homeostasis…cont’d
Homeostatic ally regulated variables
 Body Temperature
 Blood Composition
 ions, sugars, proteins, water,
 O2 and CO2 , PH & Osmolality
 Blood Pressure,
 Cardiac Output, Cardiac Rate
 Respiratory Rate and depth
 Secretions of Endocrine Glands
 Rate of intracellular chemical reactions……

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 Regulatory systems of homeostasis
 Two controlling bodies of homeostasis
 Nervous system and endocrine system
1. The nervous regulatory mechanism
 Nerves system is composed of three Hormon
major components e
 Sensory portion, integrative portion and Nerve Impulse
the motor portion.
 The sensory receptor detects any
change in the body (BGC, BT, ABP,
pain etc) and send impulse to the
brain, spinal cord (CNS) Receptor
 The CNS associate the information NTs
store some, generate thought and send R
appropriate response to the effecter
organs (muscle + glands) through the Effector cell
motor system.
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 Regulatory systems of homeostasis ….
2. The hormonal regulatory mechanism
 Hormones are chemical messengers secreted by endocrine
glands, and transported in blood to the target gland
(organs).
Examples:
 PTH act on the kidney, bone, and intestine = [Ca2+]
 Aldosterone  to the kidney   [Na+]
 ADH controls water electrolyte balance
 An organism is said to be in homeostasis when its
internal environment contains an optimum amount
of nutrients, gases, electrolytes, water, hormones,
enzymes and temperature
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 Homeostatic control systems…
 Depending on the type/characteristics of
response homeostatic control may be
I. Feedback control
 Change in the controlled variable brings a
corrective response
 The regulatory processes established after the
change is developed
II. Feed-forward control
 Anticipation of a change in the controlled
variable brings an anticipatory response
 The regulatory processes established before the
change is developed
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Feedback control mechanisms of the
homeostasis
There are two types of feed back mechanisms:
 The Negative Feedback Mechanism (NFM)
 The Positive Feedback Mechanism (PFM)
Negative feedback Mechanism (NFM)
 It works by producing an effect which opposes the
previous condition (the initiating stimulus) of the
organ
 The NFM is a mechanism that opposes or counter
acts the deviation of a controlled variable from its
normal value (range/average)
 Nature of Most Control Systems

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Negative Feedback Mechanism (NFM)
 For example: if the PCO2 is increased in the
blood,
 the negative feedback mechanism
stimulates pulmonary ventilation rate,
which has an effect on decreasing PCO2 in
blood to normal
 Most homeostatic values of the body are
controlled by NFM
1. Control of ABP
2. Control of BGL
3. Control of BT
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 Blood glucose regulation (NFM)

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The Positive Feedback Mechanism (PFM)
 It works by producing an effect which enhances or
repeats the same action like that of the starting
stimulus.
 The PFM also called viscous circle.
 Most of the action of this mechanism disturbs the
internal environment and cause disease and death.
 Fore example, if a person suffers from a heart attack
that damages the heart function, then the heart
pumps less amount of blood to the tissues including
the heart muscle and brain.
 If the heart muscle does not get sufficient nutrients
and O2, the activity of the heart becomes weaker and
weaker and the weaker the heart the lesser blood is
pumped and then death may occur.
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The Positive Feedback Mechanism cont’d…
Examples of the PFM
 Blood clotting is an example of a very valuable use of
PFM.
 Generation and propagation of the action potential.
 Stimulated nerve fiber  opening of Na+ channels  entry
of few Na+ stimulates the opening of more and more Na+
channels.
 Labor during child birth, uterine contraction is enhanced
as the head of the baby stretches the cervix.

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Positive feedback

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Uterine contractions during parturition (PFM)

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 Feed-forward
 In physiology, feed-forward control is exemplified
by the normal anticipatory regulation of heartbeat
in advance of actual physical exertion
 Feed-forward control can be likened to learned
anticipatory responses to known stimulus
 Feedback regulation of the heartbeat provides
further adaptiveness to the running eventualities of
physical exertion
 Some activities needed be rapid that no enough
time for the brain to bring change after actual
change occurred

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Feed-forward…
 The brain anticipate the change that will be
developed.
 Help for adaptation of the organ where correction
will be occurred
 Correction is by anticipation
Example
-  HR and RR before actual exercise
-  Digestive juice before food enter
into GIT
 Used to adapt and rapid rate of response to the
change.
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 Organelle
 Specialized subunit within a cell that has a specific
function, and is usually separately enclosed within its
own lipid bilayer.
 Combination of biological macromolecules.
 Structures in the cytoplasm.
 Machineries of the given cell

E.g. Mitochondria … energy production

Lysosomes …… break down ingested toxins or
worn out cell parts.

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 Cell
 The smallest, structural & functional unit of life.
 It is the smallest living unit of the human body.
 Contain basic characteristics of given organism.
 Numerous in number & estimates being 75 - 100 trillion
cells in the average adult human.
 The red blood cells, numbering 25 trillion in each human
being, transport oxygen from the lungs to the tissues.
 There are many different types of cells in the body
including:
1. Epithelial cell
2. Connective tissue cell
3. Muscle cell
4. Nervous cell
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Generalized cell…………
Components of cells
 A typical cell has two parts: nucleus and cytoplasm.
 The nucleus is separated from the cytoplasm by a
nuclear membrane and
 The cytoplasm is separated from the surrounding fluid
(ECF) by the plasma membrane

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 The nucleus
 The nucleus is the control center for the cells.
 It contains the genes, which are units of heredity.
 Chemically each gene consists of highly compressed
DNA, the double strand genetic code that stores and
transmits genetic material, and coordinates protein
synthesis in ribosomes- organelles of protein synthesis
in the form of chromosomes
 Genes control cellular activity by determining the type
of proteins, enzymes, and other substances that are
made by the cell.
 The nucleus is also the site of RNA synthesis.
 There are three kinds of RNA
 Messenger RNA (mRNA), which carries the
instruction from DNA for protein synthesis to the
cytoplasm
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The nucleus
 Ribosomal RNA (rRNA), which moves to the cytoplasm where
it becomes the site of protein synthesis
 Transfer RNA (tRNA), serves as an amino acid transporter
system within the cell for protein synthesis.
 Transcription phase of protein synthesis undertakes in
the nucleus.
 Following transcription, the mRNA ( single strand
template of protein synthesis) leaves the nucleus and
travels to the cell's ribosomes, where translation
occurs.
In summary, the flow of genetic information in the
cell is: DNA → RNA induce to facilitate protein
transcription in nucleus →complex moves out of
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nucleus → protein translation in ribosomes
 Cellular organelles
Embedded within the cytoplasm are organelles or
inner organs of the cell.
These include
 the ribosomes,
 endoplasmic reticulum (ER)
 Golgi apparatus,
 mitochondria,
 lysosomes, and
 the cytoskeletal system (microtabules and microfilaments).

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Generalized cell….

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 Ribosomes
are the sites of protein synthesis in the cell
small particles composed of Ribosomal RNA
and proteins
found in two forms:
attached to the wall of ER or
as free ribosomes.
 Free ribosomes are found in two forms
-scattered in the cytoplasm and
-clustered (aggregated) to form
functional units called polyribosomes

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Endoplasmic reticulum (ER)
 It is an extensive membranous structure that
connects various parts of the inner cell.
 ER is also connected with the nuclear membrane.
 There are two types of ER:
 rough ER and
 smooth ER.
 The function of rER is to segregate/isolate proteins
that are being exported from the cell.
 rER is the site of protein synthesis

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Smooth Endoplasmic reticulum (sER)
 The sER is free of ribosome.
 Function of sER varies in different cells.
 The sarcoplasmic reticulum of skeletal and cardiac muscle
cells are forms of sER.
 Calcium ions needed for muscle contraction are stored and
released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum of muscle cells.
 In the liver, the sER is involved in glycogen storage and drug
metabolism.
 ER can synthesize a group of drug metabolizing enzymes
called microsomal system.
Function of sER:-
1. Glycogen storage
2. Calcium storage
3. Lipid biosynthesis
4. Drug metabolism (detoxify)
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Endoplasmic reticulum (rER and sER)
Golgi Complex
 The Golgi complex consists of
flattened membranous saccules
and cisterns that communicate
with the ER and acts as a
receptacle/container for
hormones and others substances
that the ER produces.
 It then modifies and packages
these substances into secretary
granules.

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Mitochondria
 It is called “power house of the
cell” or “power plants-factory”
 Because energy rich compound
ATP which is required for
various cellular activities take
place in mitochondria
 Require oxygen to produce
energy (ATP) from food stuffs
Lysosomes
• Membraneous tructures in the cytoplasm that contains
aggregates of enzymes. Well developed in macrophages
Function:
• Degrade old dead cells and phagocytosis of microorganisms
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 Organelles
 Cell organelle may be:
i. Non-membrane-limited. These include
 chromosomes,
 nucleoli,
 ribosomes,
 microtubules,
 microfilaments and centrioles.
ii. Membrane-limited. These include the
 nucleus,
 endoplasmic reticulum (ER),
 Golgi apparatus (GA),
 lysosomes,
 mitochondria
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Intracellular Connections and Communications
• Most cells (epithelial, muscle, some nerve) cells are tightly
joined to form a close functional unit
• Points of contact between two adjacent plasma membranes
are called cell junctions
There are 3- types of cell junction:
1. Tight (occluding) junctions
– form fluid -tight seals between cells
2. Desmosomes (anchoring junctions)
– fasten cells together
3. Gap (communicating) junctions
– permit electrical signals to pass.

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Conti….

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Conti…..
Desmosomes
• Are protein attachments between adjacent cells.
• Inside the plasma membrane, a desmosome bears a
disk-shaped structure from which protein fibers
extend into the cytoplasm.
• Act like spot welds to hold together tissues that
undergo considerable stress
 common in skin, heart and uterus
 Strongest cell to cell connection

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 Conti……
Tight junctions
• Are tightly stitched seams between cells.

• Prevent movement of material between the cell.

• Are common among epithelial cells that line the

stomach, intestine, and urinary bladder
– where materials are required to pass through cells (rather
than intercellular spaces) to penetrate the bloodstream.

– transcellular transport
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 Gap junction
 Gap exists between adjacent cells

 Allow passage of small molecule between cells

 Common in cardiac and smooth muscle

 movement of ions through gap junctions transmits electrical
activity throughout an entire muscle mass

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Level of organization: summary

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 THANK YOU

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