By Anandi Rebello

The excretory organs consist of

• kidneys,
• ureters and
• urinary bladder.
The urinary bladder is not homologous to that
of higher vertebrates
 Kidney:
• Kidneys of vertebrates are made up of nephron
or kidney tubules.
• In ancestral vertebrates, kidney possesses one
nephron for each of those body segments that lay
between the anterior and posterior end of the
coelom.
• The nephron drained into a duct called Wolffian
or archinephric duct located posterior to the
cloaca. This sort of kidney is known as
holonephros because it extends to the entire
length of the body.
• In fish and amphibians
the most anterior
tubules have been lost,
some of the middle
tubules are associated
with testes and there is
a concentration and
multiplication of
tubules posteriorly
• Such a kidney is known
as a posterior kidney or
opisthonephros.
• Generally in fishes, the tubules of the anterior
region become functional in early life and are
designated as pronephors
• The kidneys occupy dorsal position in the
body cavity and is placed just ventral to the
vertebral column.
• In fishes, the kidney is distinguished into
head and trunk regions.
• Head kidney is non-excretory and endocrine in
function whereas trunk kidney (posterior
kidney) is excretory in nature.
The peculiarities are as
follows:
1. The head kidney is endocrine in nature. It has
inter-renal gland homologous to adrenal cortex
of mammals. It has chromaffin cells also which
are similar to the adrenal medulla of mammals.
2. In the kidneys are embedded yellow bodies
called corpuscle of Stannius. It is endocrine in
function.
3. Head kidney is the site for the development of
the blood.
4. Both head and trunk kidneys contain thyroid
follicles.
Ureter:
• In some species a sac-like enlargement is clearly
visible in the posterior region of the ureter known
as urinary bladder, but it is not homologous to that
of higher vertebrates.
• The urinary bladder usually opens to the exterior by a
common urinogenital aperture in the’ male fish but a
separate urinary aperture is present in female fish as
found in Mystus
Ureter:
• The function of the ureter is to conduct urine
up to urinary bladder.
• Histologically, it is made up externally by
tunica adventitia, the middle layer contains
lamina propria and smooth muscles and
outermost layer is columnar epithelial cells.
• The ureters, which conduct urine from the
collecting ducts to the urinary papilla, may
fuse at any level and may be dilated, after
fusion, to form a bladder
• The urinary ducts open to the outside
posterior to the anus.
 Urinary
bladder
• Urinary bladder is a thin walled saclike
structure
• It is also made up of three layers similar to the
ureter
 Urin
e
• To excrete large amount of water which is taken
through mouth.
• Urine contains;
- Creatine, unidentified nitrogenous compounds
some of which are amino-acids, little amount of urea
and ammonia.
- The urine is very low in concentration of
electrolyte.
- Nitrogen amounting to 2 to 25% of total nitrogen
excreted by freshwater fishes.
 Excretory System in frog
1.The elimination of nitrogenous wastes is
carried out by a well developed excretory
system.
2. The excretory system consists of a pair of
kidneys, ureters, cloaca and urinary
bladder.
3.Kidneys are compact, dark red and bean
like structures situated a little posteriorly in
the body cavity on both sides of vertebral
column.
4. Each kidney is composed of several
structural and functional units called
uriniferous tubules or nephrons.
 Excretory System in frog
5.Two ureters emerge from the kidneys in
the male frogs. The ureters act as
urinogenital duct which opens into the
cloaca.
6.In females the ureters and oviduct open
seperately in the cloaca.
7.The thin-walled urinary bladder is present
ventral to the rectum which also opens in
the cloaca.
8. The frog excretes urea and thus is a
ureotelic animal.
9. Excretory wastes are carried by blood into
the kidney where it is separated
and excreted.
 Excretory System in
Waste birds/Avian
product removal e.g. nitrogenous – uric acid (mammals urea ,
fish ammonia)
 Toxic compounds (with metabolism)
 Homeostasis –
Blood volume, Blood osmolality
Acid - base/Ph
EXCRETORY ORGANS
 Kidneys – secrete uric acid (product of
protein metabolism)
 Gastro-intestinal tract secretions e.g.
bile
 No sweat glands
 Salt glands (water birds)
 URINARY
• Major organs are SYSTEM
the kidneys,
the ureter and the cloaca.
• Two kidneys, each with a ureter that
carries the urine produced by the kidneys
to the cloaca where it leaves the body .
• No urinary bladder in bird.
• Avian kidneys are paired fitted closely the
bony depression on the dorsal wall of the
pelvis .
• Kidney tubule or nephron –basic
functional unit
Excretory System in Humans /Mammals
 The human excretory system functions to remove
waste from the human body.
 During this process animals get rid of nitrogenous waste
products of metabolism, including ammonia, urea, and
uric acid.
 Although excretory systems are diverse, nearly all produce
urine in a process that involves several steps.
Kidneys
Urethras
Urinary bladder

Urethra
1 . Filtration:
 The excretory tubule collects filtrate from the blood.
Water and solutes are forced by blood pressure
across the selectively permeable membranes of a
cluster of capillaries and into the excretory
tubule.
2. Reabsorption:
 The transport epithelium reclaims valuable
substances from the filtrate and returns them.
3. Secretion:
 Other substances are extracted from body fluids and
added to the contents of the excretory tube.
4. Excretion:
 The filtrate leaves the system and the body.
 This system consists of specialized structures and
capillary networks that assist in the excretory process.
 The human excretory system includes the kidney and
its functional unit, the nephron.
 The excretory activity of the kidney is changed by
specialized hormones that regulate the amount of
absorption within the nephron.
Bladder Kidneys

Ureters
Urethra
  Located both sides of the spine between
thoracic and lumbar vertebrae.

 Blood enters the kidneys through renal

arteries and leaves through renal veins.

 Tubes called ureters carry waste

products from the kidneys to the urinary
bladder for storage or for release.

During urination, urine is expelled from the urinary

bladder through the urethra.
Flow of Urine
Glomerulus

Nephron
Renal Tubules

Renal Pelvis Renal artery

Renal vein
Renal Calices
Ureter
Renal medulla
Ureters Renal capsule
Renal cortex
Kidneys filter about 1700 liters of blood daily in the average adult.

Parts of the kidneys Medulla

• Cortex
- outer protective portion
• Medulla Hilum
- inner soft portion
• Hilum
- a depression located in the middle of the
concave side of the kidney where blood
vessels, nerves, and the ureters enter and
exit the kidneys Cortex
 The cortex is where the blood is filtered.
 The medulla contains the collecting ducts which carry
filtrate (filtered substances) to the pelvis.
 The pelvis is a hollow cavity where urine accumulates
and drains into the ureter.
Nephron
 The functional units of the kidney are called nephrons.
 Nephrons are located in the renal cortex, except for their
loops of Henle, which descend into the renal medulla.
 A tube approximately 6 to 7
inches long attached to each
kidney.
Made up of three layers of
tissue
 Smooth muscle Ureter
 Fibrous tissue
 Mucous layer

Peristalsis, a rhythmic
contraction of the ureter smooth
muscle which helps to move the
urine into the bladder.
Urinary Bladder
•Hollow, muscular organ that
stores urine
Urinary bladder •Muscles hold the urine in
place
Ureter
• Holds 300 to 400 milliliters
of
urine before emptying
•Walls contain epithelial tissue
that stretch to allow the bladder
to hold twice its capacity

Prostate
gland

Urethra
Urethra
A tube of smooth muscle with a mucous lining that carries
urine from the bladder to the outside of the body.

Female Urethra Male Urethra

•Approximately 1 . 5 • Approximately 8 inches long
inches long •Passes through three different
• Opens through regions:
the  Prostate gland
meatus  Membranous portion
 Penis