Excretion

An Important Life
Process

- Prepared by Prashant Sharma of class Xth ‘B’

Topics to be
covered
What is Excretion?
Significance of Excretion
Excretion in Plants
• Excretion of gases and water
• Excretion of Organic by-
products and Oil
• Importance of Excretion
in Plants
Eexcretion in Animals
• Ammonotelic organism
• Ureotelic organism
• Uricotelic organism
• Importance of Excretion
in Animals
Excretion in Human Beings
• Kidney
• Structure of a Nephron
• Ureters
• Urinary Bladder
• Urethra
• Other Excretory Organs-
Skin, lungs and Liver
• Importance of Excretion
in Humans
What is
Excretion?
Excretion is a process by which metabolic waste is
eliminated from an organism. In vertebrates this is
primarily carried out by the lungs, kidneys and skin.
This is in contrast with secretion, where the substance
may have specific tasks after leaving the cell.
Excretion is an essential process in all forms of life.
For example, in mammals urine is expelled through
the urethra, which is part of the excretory system.
In unicellular organisms, waste products are
discharged directly through the surface of the cell.
During life activities such as cellular respiration,
several chemical reactions take place in the body.
These are known as metabolism. These chemical
reactions produce waste products such as carbon
dioxide, water, salts, urea and uric acid. Accumulation
of these wastes beyond a level inside the body is
harmful to the body. The excretory organs remove
these wastes. This process of removal of metabolic
Significance of Excretion
• Removal of unwanted metabolic by-products: Metabolism of
carbohydrates and fats produces CO2and H2O, similarly Protein
metabolism produces nitrogenous wastes in the cell and tissue which
are remove by excretion.
• Removal of toxic wastes: accumulation of excretory products such
as nitrogenous wastes, CO2, pigments formed by the breakdown of
haemoglobin, drugs etc.is harmful to the body. So, these toxic wastes
are removed.
• Osmoregulation of the body: it helps maintaining constant ionic
concentration of body fluid as well as Regulating water content of
the body
• Regulation of body PH
• Thermoregulation: Excretion also helps to maintain a constant
body temperature
Excretion in Plants
The cellular respiration, photosynthesis, and other
metabolic reactions produce a lot of excretory products in
plants. Carbon dioxide, excess water produced during
respiration and nitrogenous compounds produced during
protein metabolism are the major excretory products in
plants. Excretion in plants can be summarized as follows:
• Transpiration: Gaseous wastes and water are excreted
through stomata, lenticels of the stem, and the outer
surface of stems, fruits, etc.
• Storing: Some organic wastes are stored in plant parts
such as barks and leaves.
• Diffusion: Aquatic plants excrete metabolic wastes
through diffusion. Terrestrial plants excrete into the soil.
 Excretion of gases and water
Plants produce two gaseous waste products i.e.
oxygen during photosynthesis and carbon
dioxide during respiration. Excretion of gaseous
waste in plants takes place through stomatal
pores on leaves. Oxygen released during
photosynthesis is used for respiration while
carbon dioxide released during respiration is
used for photosynthesis.

Excess of water is also excreted from the plant

body through the stomatal pores and from the
surfaces of fruits and stems. The process of
elimination of water is called transpiration.
 Excretion of
Organic by-products
Other than gaseous wastes, metabolism
in plants also generates organic by-
products. These wastes are stored in
different forms in different parts. The
gums, oils, latex, resins, etc. are some
waste products stored in plant parts like
barks, stems, leaves, etc. Eventually,
plants shed off these parts.
Oil
The oil produced from orange,
eucalyptus, jasmine, latex from the
rubber tree, papaya tree, and gums from
acacia, are different forms of stored
waste products. Sometimes they even
excrete into the soil.  Excretion in
aquatic plants takes place
through diffusion.
Importance of Excretion
in Plants
Excretion is also done by green plants, which
produce water as respiratory products. Carbon
dioxide released by humans during exhalation
is utilised by green plants for the process of
photosynthesis. Plants get rid of excess water
by transpiration and guttation.
In general, plants contain vacuoles which
enclose all other metabolic waste that is
generated. They are in a leaf cell, which allows
vacuoles to crystallize. We usually see the
vacuoles get filled, and then the leaf drops.
These are known as Excretophores. Saps and
gums are also the types of excretion displayed
by plants, which we see with our naked eye.
 Eexcretion in Animals
Metabolism of carbohydrates and fats
produces CO2and H2O which are easy to
remove. They are effectively removed
through lungs (expired air), skin (sweat) or
kidneys (urine). Other excretory products
such as bile pigments (formed by the
breakdown of RBCs), drugs etc. are removed
in liver. Metabolism of proteins produces
nitrogenous wastes such as ammonia, which
is the basic nitrogenous catabolites of
protein, formed by breakdown of amino
acids is finally removed from Kidney.
Depending upon the form in which
nitrogenous waste is excreted from the body,
the organisms are grouped as under into
three categories:
Ammonotelic, Uricotelic and Ureotelic
 Ammonotelic organism
• Those animals which excrete their nitrogenous
waste in the form of ammonia are known
as ammonotelic.
• Ammonia is highly soluble in water with which it
forms ammonium hydroxide (NH4OH) which can
damage cells directly by its alkaline caustic action.
• Excretion of ammonia requires large amounts of
water, so that more water loss from the body. That
is why such a mode is suitable for aquatic
organisms which have a constant access to water.
• Ammonia is the first metabolic waste product of
protein metabolism and no energy is required to
produce ammonia.
• Examples: All aquatic invertebrates, bony fishes
and aquatic amphibians are ammonotelic
organisms.
 Ureotelic organism
• Those animals that excrete their nitrogenous
waste mainly in the form of urea are known
as ureotelic and the phenomenon is known
as ureotelism.
• Urea can be stored in body for considerable
periods of time, and is least toxic. It is
eliminated in the form of urine.
• Examples: Ureotelism is exhibited by semi-
terrestrial animals, e.g. adult amphibians and
mammals
Uricotelic organism
• Those animals which excrete their
nitrogenous waste mainly in the form of uric
acid and urates are known as uricotelic.
• The phenomenon is known as uricotelism.
• Elimination of uric acid requires lesser
amount of water, comparatively less soluble
in water and is less toxic as compared to
ammonia.
• Examples: All terrestrial animals like
insects, reptiles, and birds excrete uric acid as
nitrogenous wastes
Importance of Excretion
in Animals
Excretion, the process by which animals rid themselves of
waste products and of the nitrogenous by-products
of metabolism. Through excretion organisms control
osmotic pressure—the balance between inorganic ions and
water—and maintain acid-base balance. The process thus
promotes homeostasis, the constancy of the organism’s
internal environment. Every organism, from the smallest
protist to the largest mammal, must rid itself of the
potentially harmful by-products of its own vital activities.
This process in living things is called elimination, which
may be considered to encompass all of the various
mechanisms and processes by which life forms dispose of
or throw off waste products, toxic substances, and dead
portions of the organism. The nature of the process and of
the specialized structures developed for waste disposal vary
greatly with the size and complexity of the organism.
Excretion in Human
Beings
Every living organism generates waste in its
body and has a mechanism to expel it. In
humans, the excretory system takes care of
waste generation and elimination. It comprises
of the following structures:
• 2 Kidneys
• 2 Ureters
• 1 Urinary bladder
• 1 Urethra
1. Kidney
Kidneys are bean-shaped structures located on
either side of the backbone and are protected by
the ribs and muscles of the back. Each human
adult kidney has a length of 10-12 cm, a width
of 5-7 cm and weighs around 120-170g.
The kidneys have an inner concave structure.
The blood vessels, ureter and nerves enter the
kidneys through the hilum, which is a notch at
the inner concave surface of the kidney. The
renal pelvis, a large funnel-shaped space is
present inner to the hilum, is has many
projections known as calyces.
Structure of a
Nephron
The nephron is the functional unit of a
kidney. In fact, each kidney consists of millions
of nephrons. They all function together to filter
blood and expel waste products. It consists of
the following parts:
• Bowman’s capsule– It is the first part of
the nephron. It is a cup-shaped structure and
receives the blood vessels. Glomerular
filtration occurs here. The blood cells and
proteins remain in the blood.
• Proximal Convoluted Tubule– The
Bowman’s capsule extends downwards to
form the proximal tubule. Water and reusable
materials from the blood are now reabsorbed
back into it.
• The loop of Henle– The proximal tubule
leads to the formation of a u-shaped loop
called the Loop of Henle. It has three parts: the
descending limb, the u-shaped bend, and the
ascending limb. It is in this area in which urine
becomes concentrated as water is reabsorbed.
The descending limb is permeable to water
whereas the ascending limb is impermeable to
it.
• Distal Convoluted Tubule– The Loop of
Henle leads into the distal convoluted tubule. It
is where the kidney hormones cause their
effect.
• Collecting Duct– The Distal Convoluted
Tubule of each nephron leads to the collecting
ducts. The collecting ducts together form the
renal pelvis. Through renal pelvis, the urine
passes into the ureter and then into the bladder.
2. Ureters
The ureters are tubes made of smooth muscle 
There is one ureter that comes out of each
kidney as an extension of the renal pelvis. that
propel urine from the kidneys to the urinary
bladder. In the human adult, the ureters are
usually 20–30 cm (8–12 in) long and around
3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) in diameter. The ureter
is lined by urothelial cells, a type
of transitional epithelium, and has an
additional smooth muscle layer in third closest
to the bladder that assists with peristalsis.
 3. Urinary Bladder
The urinary bladder, or simply bladder, is a
hollow muscular organ in humans and other
vertebrates that stores urine from
the kidneys before disposal by urination. In
the human the bladder is a hollow muscular, and
distensible organ that sits on the pelvic floor. Urine
enters the bladder via the ureters and exits via
the urethra. The typical human bladder will hold
between 300 and 500 ml (10.14 and 16.91 Fl oz)
before the urge to empty occurs, but can hold
considerably more. Furthermore, Micturition is the
act of expelling urine from the body. The bladder
receives urine from the ureters, one from each
kidney. In addition, the level of placement of the
bladder in the body differs in men and women.
4. Urethra
The urethra is a tube that arises from
the urinary bladder. Its function is to
expel the urine outside by micturition.
In addition, it is shorter in females and
longer in males. Furthermore, in
males, it functions as a common path
for sperms and urine. Also, sphincter
guards the opening of the urethra.
Other Excretory Organs
Apart from the above-mentioned organs, there
are other organs that perform excretion. They are:
• Skin: The skin is the largest organ in the body. Its
primary function is to protect the different organs of
the body. Sweat glands in the skin secrete a fluid
waste called sweat or perspiration; however, its
primary functions are temperature control and
pheromone release. Therefore, its role as a part of
the excretory system is minimal. Sweating also
maintains the level of salt in the body.
In mammals, the skin excretes sweat through sweat
glands throughout the body. The sweat, helped by salt,
evaporates and helps to keep the body cool when it is
warm. In amphibians, the lungs are very simple, and
they lack the necessary means to the exhale like
other tetrapod can. The moist, scale-less skin is
therefore essential in helping to rid the blood
of carbon dioxide, and also allows for urea to be
expelled through diffusion when submerged
• Lungs: Lungs are the primary organs of
respiration in humans. They facilitate gaseous
exchange where oxygen is taken in whereas
carbon dioxide is given out. Therefore, lungs help
in expelling or eliminating carbon dioxide which
is a waste substance for the body. Along with
carbon dioxide, the lungs also give out water in
the form of water. The lungs eliminate around
18L of carbon dioxide per hour and 400ml of
water as vapour per day.
The amount of water eliminated as vapour through
the lungs depends upon the temperature of the
environment and condition of the body. In cases
where the water levels in the body are less, the
amount of water vapour eliminated is also reduced.
• Liver: The liver plays a vital role
in the formation and elimination of
urea. This urea is then transported
to the kidneys for elimination. The
liver is known as the ‘graveyard of
RBCs’ as it is here that they are
destroyed. The by-products of
RBC destruction, metabolized
drug by-products, and hormonal
metabolites are all synthesized in
the liver and poured into the bile.
Bile is then carried forward to the
intestines which eliminate these
wastes through faeces.
Importance of Excretion
in Humans
The excretory system in human beings expel wastes
that are usually toxic when they accumulate in the
body. Sweating is also a type of excretion displayed
by humans. Sweat also helps in bringing down the
temperature of the body because high temperatures
can be fatal or cause life-threatening injuries. Dogs
have a very limited number of sweat pores and they
discharge excess body temperature through panting.
Unicellular organisms like amoeba also produce
metabolic waste products and they rid themselves of
these by a process called diffusion. But they also use
this as a method for respiration since they obtain
oxygen through this process.
A virus does not consume nutrients like any other
living organisms hence they do not produce wastes
that are usually associated with metabolism.
THANK
YOU