IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

From session 1 1.1 Characteristics of living organisms

Excretion

 Metabolism = sum of all chemical reactions in organism

e.g. respiration, digestion, assimilation…

 All organisms produce toxic/poisonous materials

= Metabolic wastes

 Excretion = removal of metabolic wastes

 Animals: Urea in urine, Sweating out toxins, Breathing out CO2

 Plants: store metabolic wastes in leaves until leaves fall off

Egestion (defecation) is NOT excretion

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Excretion in Flowering plants

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
NEED to get rid of them

 Excretion = removal from organisms of toxic materials

- waste products of metabolism that the body itself produced

e.g. carbon dioxide, urea

- substances in excess of body’s requirements

e.g. salts in excess

- hormones that are not needed anymore

 Common misconception
Egestion is not excretion
Faeces contain food that body could not digest
Faeces are not made by the body
Except bilirubin

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
 Three main excreting organs in humans
 Four main excretory products in humans
1. Lungs
1. Carbon dioxide 2. Kidney
2. Urea 3. Skin
3. Excess salts
 One additional organ involved
4. Water
Liver

Excretory product Excreted in Producing organ Excreting organ

Carbon dioxide Exhaled air All cells Lungs

+ Water Respiration Gas exchange

Urea Urine Liver Kidneys

+ Water Urination Deamination of amino acids Filtration of blood

Excess salts Urine All cells Skin

+ Water Urination Perspiration
Sweat

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of skin in excretion

 Water, salt and some urea diffuse

from the blood into the sweat
gland and are excreted as
perspiration

 Perspiration acts to regulate body

temperature by removing excess
heat

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of liver in excretion
 Proteins from food
- Digested to amino acids
in stomach + small intestine

 Amino acids
- Absorbed in blood
- Transported to liver by
hepatic portal vein
liver
 Liver uses a part of the amino acids
to produce plasma proteins
Assimilation
Proteins transported by plasma
e.g. fibrinogen

 Amino acids needed by cells of body

are redistributed to these cells
Cells make their own proteins
Assimilation

 Body cannot store amino acids

Excess amino acids stay in liver
Excess amino acids are broken down
One product is urea
Transported by blood into kidneys IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.
 Excretion in Humans
The role of liver in excretion
Deamination = removal of Nitrogen-containing part of amino acids to form urea

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of liver in excretion
Other functions of the liver

- Storing excess glucose as insoluble glycogen

- Making bile to emulsify fats from food

- Breaking down hormones after they have circulated in the blood long enough

- Breaking down harmful substances

e.g. alcohol and drugs

Bile contains a yellow/green pigment = Bilirubin

Haemoglobin broken down in liver, producing bilirubin
Bilirubin excreted by liver into small intestine
Bilirubin expelled in faces
Bilirubin gives brown colour to faeces

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion

 Kidneys filter the blood

 Kidneys excrete - urea formed by liver from excess amino acids

from blood - excess salts
- excess water

 Kidneys produce urine

Urine contains water, urea and excess salts

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
The urinary system

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Structure of kidneys

 Three main parts:

- the cortex
- the medulla
- the pelvis

 Cortex and medulla contains nephrons

Basic unit of kidney

 Each nephron begins in the cortex,

loops down into the medulla,
back into the cortex, and then
goes down again through
the medulla to the pelvis

 Nephrons branch in to form collecting ducts

 Collecting ducts branch in to form the

ureters in pelvis

 The ureters carry urine made by

nephrons to the bladder
Each kidney contains 350.000 nephrons
Total 700.000 nephrons in human body

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Structure of kidneys

 Blood comes in from aorta through renal

arteries

 Blood is cleaned by nephrons

 Metabolic wastes + excess water = urine in

ureters

 Cleaned blood in renal veins into vena cava

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Structure of kidneys
 Kidneys consist of microscopic structures called nephrons or Kidney tubules
 A nephron is made of :
- Glomerulus: a network of capillaries
- Renal capsule: cup-like structure surrounding the glomerulus
- Renal tubule: hollow, from Bowman’s capsule to collecting duct
 A collecting duct collects urine from several nephrons
Collecting ducts branch in to form the ureter

 Renal artery that brings blood branches out into arterioles

 Arterioles branch out into Glomerulus

 Capillaries out of renal capsule wraps around renal tubule

 Capillaries branch in to join renal vein

 Renal vein carries blood out of the kidney back to heart via
vena cava

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Function of a kidney

Ultrafiltration and selective reabsorption

 Arteriole to glomerulus: diameter bigger than arteriole from glomerulus

High pressure in capillaries of glomerulus

Part of blood plasma leaks through capillary walls into renal capsule

 What leaks out depends on

1. Size of pores of capillary walls
and
2. Size of substances

- Water, salts, urea, and glucose: smaller than pores

Leak out of capillaries into renal capsule

Only some of blood plasma’s water leaks out

- Proteins, RBCs, WBCs, Platelets: bigger than pores

Stay in blood plasma

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Function of a kidney

Ultrafiltration and selective reabsorption

 Filtrate from glomerulus trickles down renal tubule

 On the way to collecting duct, capillaries surrounding renal tubule

- absorb back substances that body needs

- do not absorb back other substances

“Selective reabsorption”

Reabsorbed: 100% Glucose from proximal convoluted tubule

Most water from loop of Henlé
Salts that are needed from both convoluted tubules

Not reabsorbed: Urea

Ammonia
Excess salts

Salts will be at the correct concentrations

in the blood after reabsorption

What has not been reabsorbed = Urine

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.
 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion

Urine and urination

 Average values

 Composition of urine varies a lot

- Diet
- Activity
- Temperature
- Intake of liquid

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion

ADH
Anti-diuretic hormone

Water content of urine depends on needs of body

 Brain measures how much water in blood

- Dehydrated: Pituitary gland produces ADH

reabsorption water increases,
volume urine decreases,
concentration solutes in urine increases

- Too much water in blood:

reabsorption water decreases,
volume urine increases,
concentration solutes in urine decreases
IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.
 Excretion in Humans
The role of the kidneys in excretion

Bladder can expand and hold about 400 cm3 of urine

 If band of circular muscle = sphincter contracted,

Urine kept in bladder

 When sphincter relaxes, muscles of bladder wall contract

Urine expelled through urethra

 Adults can control sphincter

Babies cannot
After 3 years old, most children can

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

Section 4: Coordination and Control
4.1 Excretion

Excretion in Flowering plants

Excretion in Humans
Four main excretory products in humans
The role of skin in excretion
The role of the liver in excretion
The role of the kidneys in excretion
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys
 Dialysis = process that cleans blood = replaces the kidneys
Dialysis machine = “artificial kidney”

 Dialysis needed in case of kidney failure

Due to accident or kidney disease

 Kidney malfunctioning can lead to too much potassium in blood, causing heart failure

 Affected people treated/saved by dialysis machine

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys
 Blood pumped from vein
 Dialysis tubing - permeable to tiny substances (glucose, urea, salts)
- not permeable to big substances (proteins, cells)
 Mimics what happens in the glomerulus
 Dialysis solution: - Correct concentrations of glucose and salts, and NO urea/uric acid/ammonium

Diffusions happen down concentration gradients

After diffusion, blood has the correct concentrations

of glucose and salts, and NO urea/uric acid/ammonium

Dialysis tubing long

so that diffusions
are complete

Dialysis solution kept

vein at body temperature

Dialysis solution constantly

changed to keep
artery concentration gradients

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

 Dialysis has to be done 2-3 times a week during several hours

Patients have to spend 2-3 nights per week in hospital

Kidney transplant = better solution

No need to spend time in hospital anymore

 Problem = rejection of transplanted kidney

Body detects foreign kidney as “non-self”

Immune system destroys the transplanted kidney

 Problem 1 = find enough suitable kidney donors Humans can survive

with only one kidney
 Best donor = identical twin (same DNA)
Or give immunosuppressive
No rejection
drugs to receiver
 Problem 2 = find enough suitable, healthy kidneys

 Many donors = recently deceased people

e.g. victims of road accidents
Permission is required: organ donor cards
IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.
 Excretion in Humans
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys
 Dialysis has to be done 2-3 times a week during several hours

Patients have to spend 2-3 nights per week in hospital

Kidney transplant = better solution

No need to spend time in hospital anymore

 Problem = rejection of transplanted kidney

Body detects foreign kidney as “non-self”

Immune system destroys the transplanted kidney

 Problem 1 = find enough suitable kidney donors Humans can survive

with only one kidney
 Best donor = identical twin (same DNA)
Or give immunosuppressive
No rejection
drugs to receiver
 Problem 2 = find enough suitable, healthy kidneys

 Many donors = recently deceased people

e.g. victims of road accidents
Permission is required: organ donor cards

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.

 Excretion in Humans
Dialysis and transplant of kidneys

Comparing kidney transplants with dialysis

Why choose kidney transplant over using dialysis machines?

Advantages Disadvantages

 Normal lifestyle after transplantation  Need suitable donor

No more nights in hospital
Less tired  Risk of rejection

 Dialysis machine made available for next patient  Operation very expensive
e.g. emergency need
 Some religions refuse transplantations
 Dialysis machines expensive
Buying and maintaining

IGCSE Edexcel Xavier DANIEL, Ph.D.