Anatomy

KIDNEY
Kidneys are located at the right and left lumbar area. Urine is produced in the kidneys from water and wastes extracted from the blood. The rest of the urinary system is concerned with the storage and ducting of the urine to the outside of the body. Functions of the Urinary System: Excretion, Blood volume control, Ion concentration regulation, pH regulation, Red blood cell concentration & Vitamin D synthesis. Blood is supplied to the kidneys by the renal arteries which branch off the aorta. The kidneys and are drained by the renal veins into the inferior vena cava. From the kidneys, urine passes to the urinary bladder via the ureters. Urine is passed to the outside environment via the urethra. The kidneys are protected by a tough fibrous coat called the renal capsule. Under the capsule, the arrangement of nephrons and capillaries in the kidney produce the appearance of distinct regions when viewed in longitudinal section. The outer cortex region surrounds darker triangular structures called pyramids which collectively form the medulla. The inner part of the kidney, the renal pelvis, collects the urine draining from the nephron tubules and channels it into the ureter.

The basic functional unit of the kidney is the nephron. There are over one million nephrons in each human kidney and together they are responsible for the complex water regulation and waste elimination functions of the kidneys. The heads of the nephrons are in the cortical region and the tubular component then descends through the medulla and eventually drains into the renal pelvis.

The key area of interface between the circulatory system and the tubular part of the kidney is the knot of glomerular capillaries in the Bowman's capsule. Those liquid parts of the blood that are able to cross through the filtration membrane of the capillaries pass into the Bowman's capsule and then into the tubular section of the nephron -Figure 04. The filtration membrane only allows water to pass through it and small molecules that will dissolve in water such as waste (urea, creatinine etc.) glucose, amino acids and ions. Large proteins and blood cells are too large to be filtered and remain in the blood.

The filtered fluid or filtrate enters the proximal tubule and then into the loop of Henle which is the part of the nephron which dips in and out of the medulla. From the loop of Henle, the filtrate travels through the distal tubule and then into a common collecting duct which passes through the medulla and into the renal pelvis.

The nephrons are surrounded by a fine network of capillaries called the peritubular capillaries. These perform an important role in direct secretion, selective reabsorption and the regulation of water.