Chapter 21:

The Urinary
System

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The Urinary System

Overview

of the urinary system

Structure of the kidneys
Functions of the nephron
Transportation, storage, and elimination of
urine
Aging and the urinary system

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Overview of the Urinary System

The organs of the urinary system include the kidneys, ureters,

urinary bladder, and urethra.

After the kidneys filter blood and return most of the water and many
solutes to the blood, the remaining water and solutes constitute
urine.

The kidneys regulate blood ionic composition, blood volume, blood

pressure, and blood pH.

The kidneys also release calcitriol and erythropoietin and excrete

wastes and foreign substances.

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Organs of the Female Urinary System

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Organs of the Female Urinary System

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Anatomy Overview:
The Urinary System

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Overview of the Urinary System

Functions of the Urinary System
1. The kidneys regulate blood volume and composition, help
regulate blood pressure and pH, produce two hormones, and
excrete wastes.
2. The ureters transport urine from the kidneys to the urinary
bladder.
3. The urinary bladder stores urine and expels it into the
urethra.
4. The urethra discharges urine from the body.

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Overview of the Urinary System

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Overview of the Urinary System

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Structure of the Kidneys

The kidneys lie on either side of the vertebral column between the
peritoneum and the back wall of the abdominal cavity.

Each kidney is enclosed in a renal capsule, which is surrounded by adipose

tissue.

Internally, the kidneys consist of a renal cortex, renal medulla, renal

pyramids, renal columns, major and minor calyces, and a renal pelvis.

Blood enters the kidney through the renal artery and leaves through the
renal vein.

The nephron is the functional unit of the kidney. A nephron consists of a

renal corpuscle (glomerulus and glomerular [Bowmans] capsule) and
a renal tubule (proximal convoluted tubule, descending limb of the
nephron loop, ascending limb of the nephron loop, and distal
convoluted tubule). Each nephron also has its own blood supply. The
distal convoluted tubules of several nephrons empty into a common
collecting duct.
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Functions of the Nephron

Nephrons perform three basic tasks: glomerular filtration, tubular

reabsorption, and tubular secretion.

Together, the podocytes and glomerular endothelium form a leaky filtration

membrane that permits the passage of water and solutes from the blood
into the capsular space. Blood cells and most plasma proteins remain in
the blood because they are too large to pass through the filtration
membrane. The pressure that causes filtration is the blood pressure in the
glomerular capillaries.

The amount of filtrate that forms in both kidneys every minute is the
glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP)
increases GFR; sympathetic stimulation decreases GFR.

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Functions of the Nephron

Epithelial cells all along the renal tubules and collecting ducts carry out
tubular reabsorption and tubular secretion. Tubular reabsorption retains
substances needed by the body, including water, glucose, amino acids, and
ions such as sodium (Na+), potassium (K+) , chloride (Cl-), bicarbonate
(HCO3-), calcium (Ca2+), and magnesium (Mg2+).

Angiotensin II enhances reabsorption of Na+ and Cl-. Angiotensin II also

stimulates the adrenal cortex to release aldosterone, which stimulates the
collecting ducts to reabsorb more Na+ and Cl- and secrete more K+. Atrial
natriuretic peptide (ANP) inhibits reabsorption of Na+ (and Cl- and water)
by the renal tubules, which reduces blood volume.

Most water is reabsorbed by osmosis together with reabsorbed solutes,

mainly in the proximal convoluted tubule. Reabsorption of the remaining
water is regulated by antidiuretic hormone (ADH) in the last part of the
distal convoluted tubule and collecting duct.
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Functions of the Nephron

Tubular secretion discharges chemicals not needed by the body into the
urine. Included are excess ions, nitrogenous wastes, hormones, and certain
drugs. The kidneys help maintain blood pH by secreting H+. Tubular
secretion also helps maintain proper levels of K+ in the blood.

Table 21.2 describes the physical characteristics of urine that are evaluated
in a urinalysis: color, odor, turbidity, pH, and specific gravity. Chemically,
normal urine contains about 95 percent water and 5 percent solutes.

Table 21.3 lists the abnormal constituents that can be diagnosed through
urinalysis, including albumin, glucose, red blood cells, white blood cells,
ketone bodies, bilirubin, urobilinogen, casts, and microbes.

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Functions
of the
Nephron

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Functions
of the
Nephron

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Functions of the Nephron

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Glomerular Filtration

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Anatomy Overview:
Nephron

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Functions of the Nephron

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Functions of the Nephron

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Filtration, Reabsorption,
and Secretion in
the Nephrons
and Collecting
Ducts

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Animation:
Renal Filtration

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Animation:
Renal Reabsorption and Secretion

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Negative Feedback
Regulation of Water
Reabsorption by ADH

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Substances Filtered, Reabsorbed, and

Excreted in Urine per Day

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Physical Characteristics of Normal Urine

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Transportation, Storage, and

Elimination of Urine

The ureters transport urine from the renal pelves of the right and left
kidneys to the urinary bladder and consist of a mucosa, muscularis,
and adventitia.

The urinary bladder is posterior to the pubic symphysis. Its function

is to store urine prior to micturition.

The mucosa of the urinary bladder contains stretchy transitional

epithelium. The muscular layer of the wall consists of three layers of
smooth muscle together referred to as the detrusor muscle.

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Transportation, Storage, and

Elimination of Urine

The urethra is a tube leading from the floor of the urinary

bladder to the exterior. Its function is to discharge urine from
the body.

The micturition reflex discharges urine from the urinary

bladder by means of parasympathetic impulses that cause
contraction of the detrusor muscle and relaxation of the
internal urethral sphincter muscle, and by inhibition of somatic
motor neurons to the external urethral sphincter.

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Aging and the Urinary System

With aging, the kidneys shrink in size, have lowered

blood flow, and filter less blood.

Common problems related to aging include urinary

tract infections, increased frequency of urination,
urinary retention or incontinence, and renal calculi
(kidney stones).

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End of Chapter 21
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