Role of the Kidney in the Homeostatic Control of Water Balance

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The renal system includes two kidneys, urethras, the bladder and the urethra. Our kidneys are located on the back wall of the abdomen, above the waist and are partially protected by the low ribs. The bladder is located in the centre of the pelvis and is connected to the kidneys via two urethras. The bladder has a lining of epithelium surrounded by muscle and fibrous tissue. The bladder is connected to the exterior by the urethra which is much longer in men that woman. Just below the bladder, urethra in males is surrounded by the prostate gland and forms part of the penis. Osmoregulation is the process which controls the concentration and osmotic pressure of blood by regulating water contents of the blood plasma; it maintains the homeostasis of the body’s water content. It keeps fluids from becoming too concentrated or too dilute. Osmotic pressure is a measure of the tendency of water to move into one solution from a different one via osmosis. Id the osmotic pressure is higher more water will want to move into the solution. The kidneys affect osmotic pressure because they are used to remove excess ions from blood. Kidneys filter body fluids when the waste products and extra water becomes urine, which flows to the bladder through tubes called urethras. The bladder stores urine until releasing it through urination. Waste products in the blood come from the breakdown of active tissues for example food. The body uses food for energy and once it has taken all the nutrients it needs from food wastes are taken to the blood. The kidneys need to remove the waste products so they don’t build up and damage the body. The removal of waste occurs in nephrons in the kidney and each kidney has about a million. A glomerulus (tiny blood vessel) in the nephron acts as a filter keeping normal proteins and cells in the bloodstream, letting excess fluid and waste pass through. Here a

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