How your organs work together Homeostasis and Your Body

Question Can you give an example of two organs in your body and how they work together? What is the difference between an organ and an organ system?

Processes your Body Goes Through Homeostasis Its all about keeping you the SAME. your body can only operate in a small range of conditions Any shift away from this stable state causes sickness or death

Examples of homeostasis Blood sugar levels Oxygen/carbon dioxide levels Body temperature

Systems working to accomplish each goal Blood Sugar Levels must keep the same amount of sugar in your blood to prevent you from having too much or too little at any given point in time endocrine system- makes hormones- example: insulin takes sugar OUT glucagon puts sugar in digestive system- removes nutrients from food, moving it to blood stream circulatory system- pumps blood through body, bringing sugar/nutrients to all necessary areas

Systems working to accomplish each goal Oxygen/Carbon Dioxide Levels too much oxygen or carbon dioxide is toxic to body nervous system- special nerve monitors CO 2 in blood- when too high, sends signal to body respiratory system- responds by increasing breathing rate to add or remove CO 2 circulatory system- responds by increasing heart rate to move oxygen and CO 2 to lungs for exchange

Systems working to accomplish each goal Body Temperature if body temp gets too high or low, enzymes are not able to regulate your body’s chemical reactions, causing body to stop functioning nervous system- monitors body’s internal temperature muscular system- causes involuntary muscle contraction (shivering) when cold to generate heat circulatory system- brings blood near surface of body to be cooled when temp gets too high, or moves blood to middle of body to retain heat if too cold excretory system- brings sweat to surface of body, causing evaporation  cooling of body

Homeostasis gone bad Examples of when homeostasis fails diabetes Endocrine system fails to make insulin or body does not recognize insulin. frostbite Body cannot keep an area warm. To keep the rest of the body warm, blood flow stops to that area. That tissue dies. high blood pressure Often due to high salt in diet- causes blood to take on more water to dilute salt. Leads to more volume in veins and arteries, pushing on veins and stressing the heart.

General Processes- the things you hoped you were done with… osmosis Used to add/remove water from your blood in your kidneys- keeps blood volume correct diffusion high nutrient concentration in intestines diffuses out into blood stream where nutrients get carried to cells oxygen diffuses from lung to blood and carbon dioxide diffuses from blood to lung to be removed active transport pushes materials into and out of nerves to allow them to send signals controlling the rest of the body

The bottom line All organs and systems in your body are interconnected If one fails, the rest may not have the materials your body needs to survive could cause illness or death, even if its just a part of one organ Each organ is made of groups of tissues tissues are groups of cells that have a similar function the cells need to be in certain conditions to work, and they need certain materials to do their job- if they lack what they need, they don’t work

Question What would you expect to happen if your nervous system were unable to communicate with the rest of your body systems? Can you come up with an example when this happens?