What are homeostatic mechanisms?
Act to counteract changes in the internal environment (exist at cell, tissue, organ, organism level) so internal conditions remain stable/constant
Not a steady state- dynamic equilibrium
What are the characteristics of a control system?
Give come examples of receptors:
Proprioceptors (coordination-self aware of where body is)
Nociceptors (sense pain)
Chemoreceptors (chemicals)
Thermoreceptors (heat)
What is the afferent pathway in a control system?
Communication between receptor to control centre
(Nervous system-AP’s/endocrine system-hormones)
A comes before e in alphabet so Afferent comes before Efferent
What is the efferent pathway in a control system?
Communication between the control centre and the effector
Nervous-AP’s/Endocrine-hormones
Give some examples of effectors:
These cause the change
Can the set point of a control centre vary?
It is dynamic- circadian/diurnal rhythm (things change with time) so must record time
What cues from the environment feed into circadian rhythm/biological clock?
Which nucleus in the hypothalamus is responsible for the biological clock?
Small group of neurones in suprachiasmatic nucleus
What are some circadian rhythms?
What is negative feedback + the hypothalamus/pituitary axis?
(Hypothalamus secretes hormones which have trophic effects- effect secretions of other hormone- in anterior pituitary which travels in blood to target organ for that to secrete hormone)
-local blood supply between the hypothalamus and pituitary
What is long loop negative feedback?
From last hormone in system feeding back to anterior pituitary/hypothalamus
What is the short/ultrashort loop?
Short: Hormonal product from anterior pituitary is feeding back to hypothalamus
Ultrashort: hormone released from hypothalamus inhibits its own release
What is positive feedback? (Rare)
-response to change variable even more in the direction of change
(Used when rapid change is desirable)
How do you regulate the amount of water in the body?
Osmoreceptors in hypothalamus
-Sense osmolality of blood
What is the difference between osmolarity and osmolality?
Osmolarity: number of osmoles per litre (volume)
Osmolality: number of osmoles per kg (mass)
Osmoles instead of moles (osmotically active particles)
E.g. dissolving NaCl (osmolarity will be double that of the molarity)
How does ADH work?
-low blood osmolality
-detected by osmoreceptors in the hypothalamus
-posterior pituitary secretes less ADH
-decreased absorption of water back into collecting duct
= more water lost in large volume of dilute urine
What are the 2 hormones in the posterior pituitary?
ADH
Oxytocin
Mechanism of glucose homeostasis:
-eat meal increases plasma glucose
-pancreas senses increase in glucose and releases insulin
-insulin stimulates glycogenesis in liver + stimulate glucose uptake into tissue via GLUT 4 in adipose/muscle tissue
= plasma glucose conc declines back to 5mM
-fasting decreases plasma glucose
-pancreas (detected by alpha cells in islets of langerhans) secretes glucagon
-stimulates glycogenolysis in liver so glucose released into blood
= plasma glucose increases back to 5mM
What is the endocrine system?
Collection of glands located throughout the body
(Hypothalamus, pituitary, thyroid, parathyroid, pineal, adrenal glands)
-hormones are chemical signals produced by endocrine glands and travel in blood to remote target site
Apart from endocrine glands, which organs and tissues release hormones?
What are the mechanisms of communications via hormones?
Autocrine (Hormone signal acts back on cell of origin)
Paracrine (hormone signal carried to adjacent cells over short distance via interstitial fluid)
Endocrine (hormones in bloodstream)
Neurocrine (hormone down axon and released into bloodstream)
Can a neurotransmitter be a hormone?
Yes, dependent on the context.
E.g. dopamine
Similarities/ differences between endocrine and nervous system: