describe describe the structure and function of the kidneys
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Answer:
The kidneys filter the blood to remove waste products, which they convert into urine. Urine is carried from each kidney, through a tube called a ureter to the bladder, where it is stored. The ureter and blood vessels enter and exit the kidney through the renal hilum.
The main function of the kidney would be on the excretion of water-soluble waste products from our body. The kidney has various filtration, excretion, and secretory functions. Derangement of any of these functions would result in either decreased excretion of waste products and hence their accumulation in the body or loss of some vital nutrient from the body. Based on the level of these excretory products and nutrients in the urine as well as in blood, we could make an accurate calculation to decipher the efficiency of the kidney to undertake its various functions.
What is the functional and structural unit of a kidney?
- The structural and functional unit of the kidney is called nephron.
- It consists of two main parts viz. the glomerulus and the tubular system.
- The glomerulus is composed of Bowman’s capsule and a tuft of leaky blood vessels encapsulated by the Bowman’s capsule.
- The primary purpose of the glomerulus is filtration. The leaky vessels filter into the glomerulus almost all the water, electrolytes, small proteins, nutrients such as sugar etc and excretory products such as urea etc.
- The filtration are dependent on the size and charge of the particles. The average pore size is 8 mm and hence particles of only smaller size will pass through.
- Also, the basement membrane carries a negative charge, hence preventing negatively charged particles from passing through.
- The tubular system is responsible for reabsorption of most of the water, electrolytes, nutrients as well as excretion of the remaining nutrients by means of secretion into the tubules.
- These tubules are responsible for the concentration of urine.