KIDNEY and

NEPHRON
The excretory system of human body is made up of 4
structures:

1. Two
kidneys
2. Two
ureters
3. A urinary
bladder
4. The urethra
Structure and function of the kidney:
The kidneys are organs that are located in the upper
abdominal area against the back muscles on both the left
and right side of the body.
The kidneys are slightly protected by the ribs and are
surrounded by fat for protection.
The term "renal" refers to the kidney. For
example, renal failure means kidney failure.
Renal physiology is the study of the physiology of the
kidney. 
External structure of kidney:
Internal Structure of kidney:
A minor calyx surrounds
the renal papillae of each
pyramid and collects
urine from that pyramid.
Several minor
calyces converge to form
a major calyx. From
the major calyces, the
urine flows into
the renal pelvis; and from
there, it flows into the
ureter.
Each kidney is held in place
by connective tissue,
called renal fascia, and is
surrounded by a thick layer
of adipose tissue, called
perirenal fat, which helps to
protect it. A tough,
fibrous, connective tissue
renal capsule closely
envelopes each kidney and
provides support for
the soft tissue that is inside.
Function of kidney
The kidney contains about 1 million functional
units called nephrons, which are continuous
with a system of collecting tubules. The 
nephrons are responsible for filtration, excretion
and reabsorption, and they regulate ion balance,
water content, help to stabilize blood pressure.
 Ultrastructure of kidney:
Nephrons are the structural and functional units of the
kidneys. There are normally approximately 1.0-1.2
million nephrons in each of the two kidneys in the body.
(10 to 12 lacks). Actually functions of the kidney means
that the totality of the nephron’s functions. There are
two parts of a nephron:
1. The renal corpuscle’s or the malpighian body and
2. The renal tubule
The nephron is composed of renal
corpuscle and renal tubule and is the functional unit of
the kidney. The renal corpuscle consists of glomerulus,
which is a network of small blood vessels called capillaries
and the Bowman's capsule, which is the double –layered
cup within which the glomerulus is contained, responsible
for plasma filtration .
A renal corpuscle is the blood-filtering component of the
nephron.
Renal corpuscle, also called malpighian body, filtration unit
of vertebrate nephrons, functional units of the kidney.
The inner
glomerulus layer of
capsule is called as
visceral layer
which contains
podocytes cell and
the outer layer is
called as parietal
layer with
epithelial cells.
Function of renal corpuscle
The renal corpuscle acts to filter blood. Fluid
from blood in the glomerulus is collected in
the Bowman's capsule to form "glomerular
filtrate", which is then further processed
along the nephron to form urine.
Renal corpuscle
Renal tubule:
The part of a nephron that leads away from a
glomerulus, that is made up of-
a. a proximal convoluted tubule, (PCT)
b. Nephron loop or Loop of Henle,
c. and distal convoluted tubule,(DCT)
that empties into a collecting duct.
Proximal convoluted tubule, (PCT)

The proximal convoluted tubule is the tubular

segment of the nephron that connects the renal
corpuscle to the proximal straight tubule and
ultimately to the loop of Henle. It is about 14 mm
long and located in the renal cortex of the
medulla and functions in both reabsorption and
secretion. The wall of PCT consists of single layer
of epithelial cells which posses numerous
microvilli at their one side.
Nephron loop or Loop of Henle:
 Long U-shaped portion of the tubule that conducts urine
within each nephron of the kidney .
Named after its discoverer, the German anatomist
Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle, the loop of Henle's main
function is to create a concentration gradient in the
medulla of the kidney.
The principal function of the loop of Henle is in the
recovery of water and sodium chloride from urine. It
consists of two portions- the descending limb of Henle,
then the ascending limb of Henle.
distal convoluted tubule,(DCT):

• The distal convoluted
tubule (DCT) is a portion of
kidney nephron between the
loop of Henle and the
collecting tubule.
•  The distal convoluted tubule
(DCT) and collecting duct (CD)
are the final two segments of
the kidney nephron. They have
an important role in
the absorption of many ions,
and in water reabsorption.
Structure of a Single nephron
Function of Nephron
A nephron is the basic structural and functional
unit of the kidneys that regulates water and
soluble substances in the blood by filtering the
blood, reabsorbing what is needed, and
excreting the rest as urine. Its function is vital
for homeostasis of blood volume, blood
pressure, and plasma osmolarity.
 Types of Nephron
1. Superficial
cortical
nephrons
2. Mid Cortical
nephrons
3. Juxtamedullary
nephrons
Others parts of the Human excretory
organ: