EXCRETION IN HUMANS

An accumulation of
waste is dangerous to
the cells, tissues,
organs, systems and
the body as a whole.
The human body is
designed to effectively
remove waste.
Excretion - the removal or elimination
of metabolic waste from an organism

Secretion - the release of a useful

substance (enzymes, saliva) from cells
or glands

Egestion - the removal of undigested

food solid waste from the digestive
tract in the form of faeces = defaecation
Metabolism - chemical
reactions that take place
within every cell of the body.
these can be building up
(anabolic) or breaking down
(catabolic) reactions

Renal - relates to the kidney

Deamination - removal of an
amino group from amino acids
Excretory organs
In human digestion,
carbohydrates, proteins,
fats and vitamins are
broken down into their
simplest form and enter
the blood stream to be
utilized where they are
needed.
Excretion in humans is
carried out through
different body parts and
internal organs in a series
of processes. Excretory
waste products include
CO2, H2O, bile pigments,
urea and mineral salts.
 The urinary system
Osmoregulation - the control of
water levels in the body

Adipose - fat tissue

Aorta - the main artery leaving the

heart, supplying body with blood

Renal capsule - outer membrane

covering the kidney
Renal artery - brings
oxygenated,
unfiltered blood to
the kidneys

Renal vein - carries

deoxygenated,
filtered blood, from
the kidneys
The excretory system of
humans consists of two
kidneys, two ureters,
bladder and urethra to
form the urinary system.
The renal blood supply is
also associated with the
urinary system – the
renal artery and renal
vein, including an
extensive network of
blood capillaries, ensures
that a steady flow of
blood reaches and leaves
the kidneys.
The function of the The kidney performs the
following four main
excretory system is to functions of the urinary
remove the toxic, poisonous system
substance urea, other waste
salts and excess of water from • Osmoregulation – regulation
of levels of H2O in body
the blood and excrete them in fluids
the form of a yellowish liquid • Excretion – removal of
called urine. Urine production nitrogenous waste e.g. urea
and elimination are one of the • Regulation of pH of body
fluids
most important mechanisms of • Regulation of salt
homeostasis in the body concentration of body fluids
Every day, the kidneys filter
about 1,800 litres of blood
and excrete the filtered
waste of products and
toxins through urine. It
takes just five minutes for
all the blood in our body to
pass through the kidneys;
every day this happens
about 300 times
• The kidneys are bean shaped
structures that are found half-way The structure of the kidney
down the back just under the
ribcage.
• The kidneys are protected by
adipose (fat) tissue and each
kidney is covered by a renal
capsule which protects the kidney
and its internal structures from
infections.
• Blood carrying waste products but
rich in oxygen, is taken to the
kidneys by the renal artery which
branches off the aorta.
• The blood is filtered by the kidney.
• Deoxygenated blood with the
waste products removed, leaves
the kidney through the renal vein.
 General external characteristics Convex side
1.Bean shaped: concave on one side,
convex on the other side. Hilum
2.Kidney is surrounded by a dense
connective tissue capsule(renal capsule).
3.An indentation in the concave side is
called the hilum where nerves, blood Concave
vessels and lymph vessels enter and side
leave the kidney.
4.Renal pelvis - expanded end of the ureter
Renal pelvis Renal capsule
that connects to the hilum. A region
where urine from the kidney collects and
drains into the ureter.
 The Kidney can be divided into a cortex and a medulla.
1. Renal cortex: contains upper portions of nephrons
2. Renal medulla: consists of parts of nephrons called loops
of Henlé
The structural and functional unit of the kidney
Nephron - the microscopic functional unit of the
kidney.There are approximately one million
nephrons in each human kidney - consists of 2
components: the Malpighian body and the renal
tubule.

Podocytes - specialised cells lining the Bowman’s

capsule in the kidney

Afferent arteriole - blood vessel bringing blood

from the renal artery into the bowman’s capsule of
the nephron and forming the Glomerulus

Efferent arteriole - blood vessel taking blood from

the glomerulus and into the peritubular capillary
Glomerulus - a dense capillary network in
the Bowman’s capsule of the kidney

Bowman’s capsule - a cup-shaped structure

surrounding the glomerulus

Malpighian body - made up of the

glomerulus plus Bowman’s capsule

Proximal convoluted tubule – the folded

portion of the nephron that lies between
Bowman's capsule and the loop of Henle
Distal convoluted tubule - the
folded portion of the nephron
between the loop of Henle and the
collecting tubule.

Peritubular capillaries - tiny blood

vessels, supplied by the efferent
arteriole, that travel alongside
nephrons allowing reabsorption and
secretion between blood and the
inner lumen of the nephron.
The kidneys are
highly complex
filtration organs.
Once in the kidney
the renal artery
branches into
narrower blood
vessels until they
are in contact with
the core functional
unit of the kidney,
the nephron.
Nephrons are
microscopic
coiled structures
made up of
tubes,
arterioles,
capillaries and
ducts.
 The nephron can be divided into 2 separate sections
• the Malpighian body
• the Renal tubule.

Malpighian body of the nephron

Renal tubule of the
nephron
The Malpighian body occurs in the cortex
region of the kidney: it includes the cup-
shaped Bowman’s capsule and a dense
capillary network in the hollowed-out
region of the capsule called the
glomerulus.

The inner lining of the Bowman’s capsule

has special cells called podocytes. These
cells have finger-like extensions that wrap
around the capillaries of the glomerulus.
There are slits between these extensions
to allow substances to pass through.
The renal tubule: This includes the proximal (first, or
close to) convoluted tubule in the cortex, the loop of
Henle which runs into the medulla and the distal
(second, or distant, far from) convoluted tubule
back in the cortex

The distal tubule feeds into the collecting ducts

that lead to the pelvic region of the kidney. The
renal tubule is surrounded by a secondary capillary
network known as the peritubular capillary
network.

Cuboidal epithelial cells line the renal tubule and

have microvilli extensions on their surface. Each of
these cells has a rich supply of mitochondria.

Energy supplied by cellular respiration can be used

to move substances against a gradient.
Hypertonic - a relatively low water
and a high salt concentration

Hypotonic - a relatively high water

and a low salt concentration

Permeable - allows substances to

flow easily

Dehydration - loss of water

Below is a summary of the composition of human blood. It
will help your understanding of kidney functioning
 Kidney functions performed
by the nephron
The formation of urine involves the following:
1. Glomerular filtration or ultrafiltration
2. Tubular re-absorption
3. Tubular secretion
4. Excretion
 1. Glomerular filtration
Glomerular filtration takes place in the
Malpighian body of the nephron. Blood
enters the glomerulus from the renal
artery in the afferent arteriole and
leaves the glomerulus in the efferent
arteriole (forms a peritubular
capillaries surrounding nephron) .
The formation of the glomerular
filtrate is a non-selective process,
i.e. both useful (e.g. glucose,
amino acids, vitamins, minerals
and water) and waste substances
(e.g. urea and uric acid) are filtered
through into the capsule.
 Various adaptations of the Malpighian body ensure that
filtration takes place.

• The afferent arteriole is wider than the efferent arteriole. This results in
the blood being put under high pressure forcing the plasma with dissolved
substances into the capsular space of the Bowman’s capsule.
• The walls of the glomerulus capillaries are thin and consist of a single layer
of squamous epithelial cells. This together with the podocytes found on
the inner wall of the Bowman’s capsule make ultra-filtration possible.
• Only the smaller dissolved substances travel through the filtration slits
between the podocytes. Larger proteins remain in the blood.
• Bowman’s capsule is cup-shaped to enlarge the contact area with the
glomerulus.
Three layers that determine what
makes up the filtrate that ends up in
the nephron

• The endothelium of the capillary walls

contain small holes that are to small for
blood cells to pass through
• The basement membrane prevents
protein molecules from entering the
nephron
• Special cells called podocytes line the wall
of the bowman's capsule. Podocytes have
narrow filtration slits that are the final
barrier to fluid entering the bowman's
capsule
 2. Tubular re-absorption
Tubular re-absorption takes place in the Proximal convoluted
tubule, the loop of Henle, Distal convoluted tubule and collecting
ducts.

In the proximal convoluted tubule it involves an active re-

absorption of the glucose, amino acids, vitamins and other
important substances that ended up in the glomerular filtrate. The
long proximal convoluted tubule ensures maximum reabsorption

About 65% of the water also moves back into the blood of the
peritubular capillaries by osmosis. This process prevents
dehydration and any unnecessary loss of important substances.
• Further reabsorption of water occurs in
the loop of Henle, the distal convoluted
tubule and the collecting ducts

• Reabsorption of water in the loop of

Henle depends on the salt concentration
in the medulla of the kidney

• More water gets reabsorbed in the distal

convoluted tubule and the collecting
duct under the influence of the hormone
(antidiuretic hormone) ADH.
 Why is tubular re-absorption efficient?

• Active transport needs energy. Cuboidal epithelial cells lining

the tubules have many mitochondria (site for cellular
respiration).
• Microvilli on these same cells increase surface area for
maximum re-absorption.
• The movement of water is by the passive process of osmosis.
• The Loop of Henle ensures that water is conserved and
recovered from the filtrate and returned to the blood. The cells
lining the ascending loop of Henle are impermeable (block
movement) to water. Salt is actively pumped out of the loop
and into the medulla tissue of the kidney. The medulla
becomes hypertonic (very salty) which means it has a low
water potential (water does not want to leave). A steep
gradient develops between the tubular filtrate and the medulla
tissue.
Section of a Loop of Henle where a steep gradient is created to conserve
water (Sodium ions (Na+) are actively pumped out and the chloride ions
(Cl-) follow.)
The distal convoluted tubule and
the collecting ducts are very
permeable to water so when the
filtrate enters these areas water
flows passively by osmosis into
the medulla tissue and back into
the blood of the peritubular
capillaries. The amount of water
that moves out of the filtrate is
determined by the level of
hydration of the body fluids and is
regulated by the antidiuretic
hormone (ADH).
Diagram of the location of the main processes as they occur in the nephron
 3. Tubular secretion
Tubular secretion involves the active removal
of unnecessary substances from the blood in
the peritubular capillaries into the tubular
filtrate in the distal convoluted tubule. The
substances removed include:
• Creatinine
• Ammonia
• potassium ions (K+)
• hydrogen ions (H+)
• sodium ions (Na+)
• bicarbonate ions
• drugs e.g. penicillin
 Homeostatic control of the blood pH
(part of tubular secretion)
The ability of the distal convoluted tubule to take up hydrogen
and bicarbonate ions is important in the regulation of the pH of
the blood. Homeostasis is maintained.
If the blood pH is too low (becomes too acid), more hydrogen
ions are excreted, excess ammonia (NH3) which is secreted by the
epithelial cells lining the distal convoluted tubules. Ammonium
ions form, which are secreted into the filtrate and so excreted
from the body.
If the blood pH is too high(too alkaline) , fewer hydrogen ions are
excreted.
 4. Excretion of urine
The filtrate that enters the collecting
duct is now called urine. Urine consists
of urea, excess water and salts. Useful
substances should not be excreted in
the urine. Urine collects from all the
collecting ducts in the medulla region
and empties into the pelvic region of
the kidney. Urine passes down the
ureter and into the bladder. The
bladder has muscles that control the
release of urine into the urethra and
urination occurs.
 Homeostatic regulation by the kidneys
The human body has the ability to maintain a stable internal
environment – this is homeostasis. It is important that the
body’s temperature is kept within a narrow range of around
37°C. The pH of the body fluids needs to be regulated and the
composition of these fluids need to be kept within certain
limits for effective metabolism.

The kidney is involved in 3 homeostatic mechanisms:

• the regulation of pH of the blood
• the regulation of water levels (osmoregulation)
• the regulation of salt levels in the blood
Osmoregulation
The homeostatic control of
water and salt levels in blood
and tissue fluid is known as
osmoregulation. ADH is
produced by the hypothalamus
and secreted from the pituitary
gland and helps to limit water
loss in the urine and prevent
dehydration.
Alcoholic and caffeine containing drinks act as diuretics (they cause
you to lose water by urinating frequently). ADH acts in an opposite
way as it helps the body retain water.
 Regulation of salt levels in the blood
The blood and tissue fluids are affected by the presence of solutes
(dissolved substances). Sodium and potassium are salts that are
found in the body fluids. Sodium is important in the body for good
nerve and muscle functioning. Constant levels must be maintained.

The blood and

tissue fluid returns
to normal and
HOMEOSTASIS is
maintained.