MANIBA BHULA

NURSING COLLEGE

SUBJECT: ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE

TOPIC : LIFE PROCESS AND HOMEOSTATIC MECHANISM

SUBMITTED TO, SUBMITTED BY,

Mr.Gibin Thomas, Ms. Richa Gosvami,

Assistant professor, 1 st yr M.sc(Nursing)

M.B.N.C M.B.N.C

SUBMITTED ON,
LIFE PROCESSES
Introduction

Various functions are going inside our body and inside the body of all living organisms. These
functions are necessary to maintain the living being. The maintenance functions of living organisms
must go on even when they are not doing anything particular. Even when we are just sitting in front of
computer, even if we are just asleep, this maintenance job has to go on. The processes which together
perform this maintenance job are life processes.

Definition of life processes

“Humans grow and age through various stages in their lifetime, a process known as the life process.”

The word life processes means the processes take place in the human bodies which are needed for the
existence of life on Earth. Following are the junctions of compeer life process:

1) Nutrition
2) Respiration
3) Excretion
4) Growth and repair
5) Reproduction

1) Nutrition

Nutrition is the process of getting energy from outside sources. Next process of nutrition is to break
down these sources to release energy. Process of getting nutrition can vary from organism to organism
and is affected by the external environment.

Classification based on mode of getting food organism

a) Autotrophs: make their own food. All green plants are autotrophs. You must be aware that
green leaves contain a pigment called chlorophyll, which makes them green. Apart from
colouring purpose, chlorophyll plays a more important role of converting the Sun’s photo
energy to chemical energy. The process of food preparation in plant is called Photosynthesis.
It involves making of glucose with the help of co2 and water in the presence of sunlight.
6CO2+6H2O---------- C6H12O6 +6O2
Carbon dioxide+ water== Glucose + oxygen

Glucose thus formed is used by the plant to satisfy its energy needs. The excess amount is stored as
starch in various parts of the plant.

Experiment to show presence of starch in a plant leaf

Take a potted plant with variegated leaves for example, money plant or crotons. Keep the plant in a
dark room for three days so that all the starch gets used up. Now keep the plant in sunlight for about
six hours. Pluck a leaf from the plant. Mark the green areas in it and trace them on a sheet of paper.
Dip the leaf in boiling water for a few minutes. After this, immerse it in a breaker containing alcohol.
Carefully place the above breaker in a water-bath and heat till the alcohol begins to boil. Observe the
colour of the leaf and compare this with the tracing of the leaf done in the beginning what can you
conclude about the presence of starch in various areas of leaf. Iodine after reacting with starch turns
its colour to blue.

Carbon dioxide uptake in plants

Leaves have small pores called stomata. These pores open to allow entry of co2 inside leaves. Water
flows into guard cells to swell them, which helps in opening of stomatal opening.

b) Heterotrophs

Those organisms which are dependent on other organisms for their food are called heterotrophs. Some
animals, like humans have coplex digestive system to break the food into basic constituents to make
them fit for oxidation. Certain organisms break the food into basic molecules outside their body then
absorb them. Fungi use some enzymes to break the food outside their body. Some organisms take
food from other organisms without killing them. Most of the parasites take nutrition in this way.

Human Digestive System

Human Digestive System is a complex and elaborates system. The digestive system carries out
following functions:

 Intake of food
 Digestion of food
 Assimilation of food and
 Expulsion of waste products

Movement of food in the Alimentary Canal

Alimentary canal constricts and expands in rhythmic fashion. This pushes food particles forward
through the alimentary canal. At every junction there is value like structure which prevents the back-
flow of food. Sometimes these valves or sphincters malfunction, which results in regurgitation of
food, is resulting in burning sensation in mouth and throat.

2) Respiration

Breaking down of nutrients to release energy is called respiration. The way cooking gas is burnt to
produce energy for kitchen the living organism burns food to release energy. A complex series of
oxidation- reduction goes inside the cell to burn food to produce energy. This energy is used to carry
out different activities inside a living organism.

The chemical reaction during respiration can be written as follow:

C6H12O6+6O2 6CO2+ 6H2O +674Kcal

Oxygen is required for oxidation of Glucose during cellular respiration. In plants and smaller animals
this oxygen gets inside the organism by simple mechanism way called osmosis or by difference in air
pressure. But in large organisms complex system is needed to carry out transportation of oxygen
inside the body and that of carbon dioxide out of the body. This process is called extemal respiration
and is different from cellular respiration.

Haemoglobin: Red blood cells in the blood contain haemoglobin which carries O2 to the cell and
CO2 away from the cells.
Arteries: is carrying oxygenated blood from heart to different parts of the body.

Veins: is carrying deoxygenated blood from different parts of the body to heart.

Heart: its functions like a pump and help in pumping in the deoxygenated blood to lungs for
oxygenation. Thereafter, heart pumps oxygenated blood to different parts of the body.

Lungs: A lung helps in sucking in oxygen from air and pumping out carbon dioxide in the air.

3) Excretion

Expulsion of harmful substances, which are by products of life processes, is called excretion. In
human body many organs help in excreting harmful substances out of the body.

For example lungs expel co2, skin expels some waste products through sweating, mouth expels some
waste through spit, and rectum expels waste through faeces. But main excretory organ in the human
body is kidney. Kidney filters harmful substances from blood and expels them through urine.

After all the metabolic activities blood collects by products from different parts of the body and
passes through kidney to filter out harmful products. Then only it goes to the heart for oxygenation.
This is the reason a malfunctioning kidney is a life threatening condition. People with bad kidney
need to undergo dialysis. In this process blood is filtered using artificial kidneys or dialysis machine.

4) Growth and repair

Cellular division: the cell cycle, or cell division cycle, is the series of events that takes place in a cell
leading to its division and duplication. In cell without a nucleus (prokaryotic), the cell cycle occurs
via a process termed binary fission. In cells with a nucleus (eukaryotes), the cell cycle can be divided
in two brief periods: interphase. During which the cell grow, accumulating nutrients needed for
mitosis and duplicating its DNA and the mitosis phase, during which the cell splits itself into two
distinct cells, often called “daughter cells”.

The cell-division cycle is a vital process by which a single- celled fertilized egg develops into a
mature organism, as well as the process by which hair; skin, blood cells and some internal organs are
renewed.

Phases: G1, S (synthesis), G2 (collectively known as interphase) and M phase (mitosis)

Cellular healing: the reparative process begins at approximately the same time as the injury and is
interwoven with inflammation. Healing proceeds after the inflammatory debris has been removed.
Healing may occur by regeneration in which the gradual repair of the defect occurs by proliferative of
cells of the same type as those destroyed or by replacement.

5) Reproduction
 Ovulation
 The menstrual cycle
HOMEOSTATICS MECHANISM

It is defined by Claude Bernad and later Walter Cannon in 1926 is the property of a system,
either open or closed, that regulates its internal environment and ends to maintain a stable,
constant condition. Multiple dynamic equilibrium adjustment and regulation mechanisms
make homeostasis possible.

Control mechanisms

When the receptor senses a stimulus, it sends information to a control centre, the component
that sets the range at which a variable is maintained. The control centre determines an
appropriate response to the stimulus. In most homeostatic mechanisms the control centre is
the brain. The control centre then send singles to effectors which can be muscles, organs or
other structures receives signals from the control centre. After receiving the signal, a change
occurs to correct the deviation by either enhancing it with positive feedback or depressing it
with negative feedback.

Positive feedback

Positive feedback mechanisms are designed to accelerate or enhance the output created by a
stimulus that has already been activated.

It perpetuates the chain of events set in motion by the original disturbance instead of
compensating for it. As the system becomes more unbalanced, disorder and disintegration
occurs.

For example, Event in the body is blood platelet accumulation, which in turn causes blood
clotting in response to a break or tear in the lining of blood vessels.

Negative feedback

Negative feedback mechanism consists of reducing the output or activity of any organ or
system back to its normal range of functioning. Eg. Regulating blood pressure.

Blood vessels can sense resistance of blood flow against the walls when blood pressure
increases. The blood vessels act the receptors and they relay this message to the brain. The
brain then sends a message to the heart and blood vessels, both of which are the effectors.
The heart rate would decrease as the blood vessels increase in diameter. This change would
cause the blood pressure to fall back to its normal range. The opposite would happen when
blood pressure decreases, and would cause vasoconstriction.

Homeostatic imbalance

Many diseases are a result of disturbance of homeostasis, a condition known as homeostatic

imbalance. As it ages, every organism will lose efficiency in its control systems. The
inefficiencies gradually results in an unstable internal environment that increases the risk for
illness. In addition, homeostatic imbalance is also responsible for the physical changes
associated with ageing. Heart failure has been seen where nominal negative feedback
mechanisms become overwhelmed and destructive positive mechanism takeover.

Summary

Today we dealt about life process and homeostatic imbalance. In that we seen varies system which
involve in life process and positive and negative feedback of homeostatic mechanism.

Conclusion

Various functions are going inside our body and inside the body of all living organisms. These
functions are necessary to maintain the living being. For that some homeostatic mechanism is require
for all process. For all systemic process have require the positive and negative feedback of
homeostatic mechanism.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOK

 EMMESS, “ A Concise Textbook of ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE” 1st edition,

EMMESS Medical Publishers, page no- 194 to 197
 Jacob Anthikad, “ PSYCHOLOGY FOR GRADUATE NURSES”, 4th edition, Jaypee
Brothers Medical Publishers (P)Ltd, page no- 208
 Rawat H.C, “Textbook of ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE” 1st edition, Jaypee
Brothers Medical Publishers (P)Ltd, page no- 762 to 768
 ANN J. ZWEMER, “BASIC PSYCHOLOGY FOR NURSE IN INDIA”, B.I publications
pvt. Ltd page no- 168