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Physiology

A rise in blood pressure stretches the atria of the heart. This triggers the release of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP). ANP is a peptide of 28 amino acids. ANP lowers blood pressure by:

  • relaxing arterioles
  • inhibiting the secretion of renin and aldosterone
  • inhibiting the reabsorption of sodium ions in the collecting ducts of the kidneys.

The effects on the kidney reduce the reabsorption of water by them thus increasing the flow of urine and the amount of sodium excreted in it (These actions give ANP its name: natrium = sodium; uresis = urinate). The net effect of these actions is to reduce blood pressure by reducing the volume of blood volume in the system.

The Heartbeat

During rest, the heart beats about 70 times a minute in the adult male, while pumping about 5 liters of blood.

The stimulus that maintains this rhythm is self-contained. Embedded in the wall of the right atrium is a mass of specialized heart tissue called the sino-atrial (S-A) node. The S-A node is also called the pacemaker because it establishes the basic frequency at which the heart beats.

The interior of the fibers of heart muscle, like all cells, is negatively charged with respect to the exterior. In the cells of the pacemaker, this charge breaks down spontaneously about 70 times each minute. This, in turn, initiates a similar discharge of the nearby muscle fibers of the atrium. A tiny wave of current sweeps over the atria, causing them to contract.

When this current reaches the region of insulating connective tissue between the atria and the ventricles, it is picked up by the A-V node (atrio-ventricular node). This leads to a system of branching fibers that carries the current to all parts of the ventricles.

The contraction of the heart in response to this electrical activity creates systole.

A period of recovery follows called diastole.

  • The heart muscle and S-A node become recharged.
  • The heart muscle relaxes.
  • The atria refill. 

The Electrocardiogram

The electrical activity of the heart can be detected by electrodes placed at the surface of the body. Analysis of an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) aids in determining, for example, the extent of damage following a heart attack. This is because death of a portion of the heart muscle blocks electrical transmission through that area and alters the appearance of the ECG

Control of the Heart

Although the A-V node sets the basic rhythm of the heart, the rate and strength of its beating can be modified by two auxiliary control centers located in the medulla oblongata of the brain.

  • One sends nerve impulses down accelerator nerves.
  • The other sends nerve impulses down a pair of vagus nerves

Accelerator Nerves

The accelerator nerves are part of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system, and  like all post-ganglionic sympathetic neurons  release noradrenaline at their endings on the heart.

They increase the rate and strength of the heartbeat and thus increase the flow of blood. Their activation usually arises from some stress such as fear or violent exertion. The heartbeat may increase to 180 beats per minute. The strength of contraction increases as well so the amount of blood pumped may increase to as much as 25-30 liters/minute.


Vigorous exercise accelerates heartbeat in two ways;

  • As cellular respiration increases, so does the carbon dioxide level in the blood. This stimulates receptors in the carotid arteries and aorta, and these transmit impulses to the medulla for relay  by the accelerator nerves  to the heart.
  • As muscular activity increases, the muscle pump drives more blood back to the right atrium. The atrium becomes distended with blood, thus stimulating stretch receptors in its wall. These, too, send impulses to the medulla for relay to the heart.

Distention of the wall of the right atrium also triggers the release of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) which initiates a set of responses leading to a lowering of blood pressure

The Vagus Nerves

The vagus nerves are part of the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system. They, too, run from the medulla oblongata to the heart. Their activity slows the heartbeat.

Pressure receptors in the aorta and carotid arteries send impulses to the medulla which relays these  by way of the vagus nerves  to the heart. Heartbeat and blood pressure diminish.

Levels of Organization:

CHEMICAL LEVEL - includes all chemical substances necessary for life (see, for example, a small portion - a heme group - of a hemoglobin molecule); together form the next higher level

CELLULAR LEVEL - cells are the basic structural and functional units of the human body & there are many different types of cells (e.g., muscle, nerve, blood)

TISSUE LEVEL - a tissue is a group of cells that perform a specific function and the basic types of tissues in the human body include epithelial, muscle, nervous, and connective tissues

ORGAN LEVEL - an organ consists of 2 or more tissues that perform a particular function (e.g., heart, liver, stomach)

SYSTEM LEVEL - an association of organs that have a common function; the major systems in the human body include digestive, nervous, endocrine, circulatory, respiratory, urinary, and reproductive.

There are two types of cells that make up all living things on earth: prokaryotic and eukaryotic. Prokaryotic cells, like bacteria, have no 'nucleus', while eukaryotic cells, like those of the human body, do.

Respiration occurs in three steps :
1- Mechanical ventilation : inhaling and exhaling of air between lungs and atmosphere.
2- Gas exchange : between pulmonary alveoli and pulmonary capillaries.
3- Transport of gases from the lung to the peripheral tissues , and from the peripheral tissues back to blood .
These steps are well regulated by neural and chemical regulation.

Respiratory tract is subdivided into upper and lower respiratory tract. The upper respiratory tract involves , nose , oropharynx and nasopharynx , while the lower respiratory tract involves larynx , trachea , bronchi ,and lungs .

Nose fulfills three important functions which are :

1. warming of inhaled air .

b. filtration of air .

c. humidification of air .

Pharynx is a muscular tube , which forms a passageway for air and food .During swallowing the epiglottis closes the larynx and the bolus of food falls in the esophagus .

Larynx is a respiratory organ that connects pharynx with trachea . It is composed of many cartilages and muscles and

vocal cords . Its role in respiration is limited to being a conductive passageway for air .

Trachea is a tube composed of C shaped cartilage rings from anterior side, and of muscle (trachealis muscle ) from its posterior side.The rings prevent trachea from collapsing during the inspiration. 

From  the trachea the bronchi are branched into right and left bronchus ( primary bronchi) , which enter the lung .Then they repeatedly branch into secondary and tertiary bronchi and then into terminal and respiratory broncholes.There are about 23 branching levels from the right and left bronchi to the respiratory bronchioles  , the first upper  17 branching are considered as a part of the conductive zones , while the lower 6 are considered to be respiratory zone. 

The cartilaginous component decreases gradually from the trachea to the bronchioles  . Bronchioles are totally composed of smooth muscles ( no cartilage) . With each branching the diameter of bronchi get smaller , the smallest diameter of respiratory passageways is that of respiratory bronchiole. 

Lungs are evolved by pleura . Pleura is composed of two layers : visceral and parietal .
Between the two layers of pleura , there is a pleural cavity , filled with a fluid that decrease the friction between the visceral and parietal pleura.
 

Respiratory muscles : There are two group of respiratory muscles:


1. Inspiratory muscles : diaphragm and external intercostal muscle ( contract during quiet breathing ) , and accessory inspiratory muscles : scaleni , sternocleidomastoid , internal pectoral muscle , and others( contract during forceful inspiration).
 

2. Expiratory muscles : internal intercostal muscles , and abdominal muscles ( contract during forceful expiration)

Asthma = Reversible Bronchioconstruction 4%-5% of population
    Extrinsic / Atopic = Allergic, inherited (familia), chromosome 11
    IgE, Chemical Mediators of inflammation
    
a.    Intrinsic = Negative for Allergy, Normal IgE, Negative Allergic Tests

    Nucleotide Imbalance cAMP/cGMP: cAMP = Inhibits mediator release, cGMP = Facilitates mediator release
b.    Intolerance to Asprin (Triad Asthma)
c.    Nasal Polyps & Asthma

d.    Treatment cause, Symptoms in Acute Asthma
    1.    Bronchial dilators
    2.    steroids edema from Inflamation
    3.    Bronchiohygene to prevent Secondary Infection, (Remove Excess Mucus)
    4.    Education

Functions

Manufacture - blood proteins - albumen, clotting proteins , urea - nitrogenous waste from amino acid metabolism , bile - excretory for the bile pigments, emulsification of fats by bile salts

Storage - glycogen , iron - as hemosiderin and ferritin , fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, K

Detoxification -alcohol , drugs and medicines , environmental toxins

Protein metabolism -

  • transamination - removing the amine from one amino acid and using it to produce a different amino acid. The body can produce all but the essential amino acids; these must be included in the diet.
  • deamination - removal of the amine group in order to catabolize the remaining keto acid. The amine group enters the blood as urea which is excreted through the kidneys.

Glycemic Regulation - the management of blood glucose.

  • glycogenesis - the conversion of glucose into glycogen.
  • glycogenolysis - the breakdown of glycogen into glucose.

gluconeogenesis - the manufacture of glucose from non carbohydrate sources, mostly protein

Function of Blood

  • transport through the body of
    • oxygen and carbon dioxide
    • food molecules (glucose, lipids, amino acids)
    • ions (e.g., Na+, Ca2+, HCO3)
    • wastes (e.g., urea)
    • hormones
    • heat
  • defense of the body against infections and other foreign materials. All the WBCs participate in these defenses

 

PHYSIOLOGY OF THE BRAIN

  • The Cerebrum (Telencephalon) Lobes of the cerebral cortex

     

    1. Frontal Lobe
      1. Precentral gyrus, Primary Motor Cortex, point to point motor neurons, pyramidal cells: control motor neurons of the brain and spinal cord. See Motor homunculus
      2. Secondary Motor Cortex repetitive patterns
      3. Broca's Motor Speech area
      4. Anterior - abstract thought, planning, decision making, Personality
    2. Parietal Lobe
      1. Post central gyrus, Sensory cortex, See Sensory homunculus, size proportional to sensory receptor density.
      2. Sensory Association area, memory of sensations
    3. Occipital Lobe
      1. Visual cortex, sight (conscious perception of vision)
      2. Visual Association area, correlates visual images with previous images, (memory of vision, )
    4. Temporal Lobe
      1. Auditory Cortex, sound
      2. Auditory Association area, memory of sounds
    5. Common Integratory Center - angular gyrus, Parietal, Temporal & Occipital lobes
      1. One side becomes dominent, integrats sensory (somesthetic, auditory, visual) information
    6. The Basal nuclei (ganglia)
      1. Grey matter (cell bodies) within the White matter of cerebrum, control voluntary movements
    7. Cauadate nucles - chorea (rapi, uncontrolled movements), Parkinsons: (dopamine neurons of substantia nigra to caudate nucles) jerky movements, spasticity, tremor, blank facial expression
    8. The limbic system - ring around the brain stem, emotions(w/hypothalamus), processing of olfactory information

 

  • The Diencephalon

     

    1. The Thalamus - Sensory relay center to cortex (primitive brain!)
    2. The Hypothalamus
      1. core temperature control"thermostat", shivering and nonshivering thermogenesis
      2. hunger & satiety centers, wakefulness, sleep, sexual arousal,
      3. emotions (w/limbic-anger, fear, pain, pleasure), osmoregulation, (ADH secretion),
      4. Secretion of ADH, Oxytocin, Releasing Hormones for Anterior pitutary
      5. Linkage of nervous and endocrine systems

 

  • The Mesencephalon or Midbrain -

     

    1. red nucleus, motor coordination (cerebellum/Motor cortex),
    2. substantia nigra
  • The Metencephalon
    1. The Cerebellum -
      1. Performs automatic adjustments in complex motor activities
      2. Input from Proprioceptors (joint, tendon, muscles), position of body in Space
        1. Motor cortex, intended movements (changes in position of body in Space)
      3. Damping (breaking motor function), Balance, predicting, inhibitory function of Purkinji cells (GABA), speed, force, direction of movement
    2. The Pons - Respiratory control centers (apneustic, pneumotaxic)
      1. Nuclei of cranial nerves V, VI, VII, VIII

 

  • Myelencephalon

     

    1. The Medulla
      1. Visceral motor centers (vasomotor, cardioinhibtory, respiratory)
      2. Reticular Formation RAS system, alert cortex to incoming signals, maintenance of consciousness, arousal from sleep
      3. All Afferent & Efferent fibers pass through, crossing over of motor tracts
    2. Corpus Callosum: Permits communication between cerebralhemispheres
  • Generalized Brain Avtivity
    1. Brain Activity and the Electroencephalogram(EEG)
      1. alpha waves: resting adults whose eyes are closed
      2. beta waves: adults concentrating on a specific task;
      3. theta waves: adults under stress;
      4. delta waves: during deep sleep and in clinical disorders
    2. Brain Seizures
      1. Grand Mal: generalized seizures, involvs gross motor activity, affects the individual for a matter or hours
      2. Petit mal: brief incidents, affect consciousness but may have no obvious motor abnormalities
    3. Chemical Effects on the Brain
      1. Sedatives: reduce CNS activity
      2. Analgesics: relieve pain by affecting pain pathways or peripheral sensations
      3. Psychotropics: alter mood and emotional states
      4. Anticonvulsants: control seizures
      5. Stimulants: facilitate CNS activity
    4. Memory and learning
      1. Short-term, or primary, memories last a short time, immediately accessible (phone number)
      2. Secondary memories fade with time (your address at age 5)
      3. Tertiary memories last a lifetime (your name)
      4. Memories are stored within specific regions of the cerebral cortex.
      5. Learning, a more complex process involving the integration of memories and their use to direct or modify behaviors
      6. Neural basis for memory and learning has yet to be determined.
  • Fibers in CNS
    1. Association fibers: link portions of the cerebrum;
    2. Commissural fibers: link the two hemispheres;
    3. Projection fibers: link the cerebrum to the brain stem

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