Exc retion in Human Bein gs

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• under,1L1nd 1111• 1mpr>rla n, P of excrc:tio 1/IM I l',ttt , i'-9
rrodu<.. l<i
, ~110" about the diffe rent typPs of exc rE:! tory i'A'ol l lJCt .A

and orgJns nl <'xrretion; 1<1DkrY

• e,p lain the part~ of ex( retory system;

d; and
• oescr1be the role ni kidneys in filtration of bloo
disorders •
• acquain t themselves about the common
related to excretory system.
a num ber of life processes to sustain and
yl,u hcn-e learn t rhar ~ ll li vmg orga nisms perform , resp ire and prod uce
nourish themselv es, grow
CL•nrinue the ir ex istence on th15 earth . They whi ch is obta ined
\\'Un ~ one s. For carrying out
all these life processes, they require energy
h the r rocess of resp irati on.
y,
unwanted materials are produced in the bod
Hl" re\·er. during life proc esses, a num ber of
be eliminat~
which are considered as wastes and need to

e
My teacher told me tha t if we don't eliminat
the waste properly, we may get sick . \

in t he body
Yes Pinkoo! The was te products produced
accumulat e in t he
may be harmful or toxic in natu re. If they
lems.
body, they can cause serio us health prob

Do you know the kind s of wastes produced in

• U ndigested food: During digestion, som
our body ?
e of the food components remain undiges
They cann ot be absorbed by the body and are
waste.
ted.

er .
j
• Car bon dioxide and wat er: The process
of resp irati on produces CO 2 and excess wat
inated.
These are not required by our body and are elim

Excretion rn Hum an Beings

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 • Nitroo . h f d are ch e major sources of
benous waste: Th e protei n compnnents present tn t e 00 Th d
was te d Th . · · . . 'd d
- r ro ucts. eir breakdown results m urea , unc ac1 an a mmonia . ese pro ucts,
called nitroge nous WJStl"s, arc mainly fo rmeJ in the li ve r.
• \Vat . L . .
er. arge qu,rnt1n· L)f. wate r taken· 111
. \\' tth
. food
- anuJ J· rm • k5 ,ac cumulate excess water in
the hoJ\" whi ch needs w he climmatcJ frnm the hoJ y.
• Ex' t.:ess
- - saIt.s an d v1ta
• mm . s : Ex ces:, quantities
. . ot- sa It ,,n J \,·nan11· 11 :,- nrese nt in th e body are
~
a lso w,,sre:- for the h--idy.

DIFFERENT MODES OF WASTE ELIMINATION

How do we eiiminate these wastes? Do we have

separate ways for different wastes?

The eli min ation of wastes takes place in differe nt ways which in volve different organ s. These
,1re J-5 follciws.
Egestion or Defecation
TI1.e undigested fc1od prod ucts are expe lled in the fo rm of solid faeces via the alimentary
system. This is called egestion or defecation . A long with the faeces, waste products formed
in the lfrer h · the breakdown of RBCs, vita mins, hormones and bile pigments are also
thrown our. /-
Exhalation //
The products fo m1ed during respj-ration , CO and excess water, are expelled out in the gaseous
2
tom1. by the lungs. This is kno,\11 as exhalation .
Excretion
Elimination of nitrogenous \\·aste produces from the body is termed as excretion . These are
expelled from the body in a liquid fo rm by a specialised excretory system. Extra sal.~ and
extra \Yate r a re also elimina ted during the process.
Sweatjng
~

Swea t is a fluid ,,-hich contains w~ter ~-dissolved sa lts and urea. It is expelled from the body
thro ugh the sweat glands in the skin. j
Lungs Kidney ~ Intestine
-- Carbon Nitrogenous Undigested
·dioxide wastes Food

Excess Excess
Water Water Products
Excess
·, .water . formed in
. . .}.-

Extra liver
Salts

Fig. 7 .1: Organs of waste elimination and wastes eliminated

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\'- Exploring Biology -VII
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Liw1 -

l<lcl11oy

.,.._ _ ___ Blnctrfor

Fig. 7.2: Organs of W;isto ~ lllinotion In Humm1 Bolngs

~cn,tn t

"·'" ,0u ~now the various modes of eli mination of wastes In human beings. Ca n you complete th<•
•~' ~'\'' ng t.,ble?

-
Organ System Maior Waste Form/State! of
Involved Products Eliminated wastes

l.
2,

4.
5,

summer~, we
T!"-e or,no pal function of sweat is to provide a cooling effect to the human body. During
sweat a lot . When the sweat evaporates from the body, it takes away some hea t whi ch produces a
cooiir,g E>ffect. A normal person has about 2.6 million s~eat glands in th e skin .

Take a Break... ,
1. Stat.e whether the following statements are true or false.
(o) The breakdown of nitrogenous waste takes place in liver.
(bl Sweat contains water, dissolved salts and ammonia.
{c) Elimination of gaseous waste takes place through lungs.
(d) Egestion and excretion are synonyms and are used for elimi nati on of nitrogenous waste.
(e) Liver is the major orga n to prod uce nitroge nou s waste .

Excretion in Human Beings

,
EXCRETORYSYSTEM IN HUMAN BEINGS
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\ "'"' \ •'',\: .. ;1' " " '" · . · , ii , •x T •tr,n ,-..,,,tn n in human
ltl t, , I ll '!lh {Ilt' 1' \ 1Tt' ( l( lll (11 ttl!l \ ( l \ t '(J)l\(ll lf (( . lC l I I
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,s tlw 1':Xl:t'l' II 1ry syst·l:m ut- I·1utn,m
. I:"ll.'.I,·nos
,:-,· · \ t consi i-;ts· of following

• :, p~ir ,,t" ki-lnqs

• :\ \':Iii' ,,t \l\'l' l\'rs
• ,, si n~k tnl',li,m urin :1rv bb,i1kr
• ., ut\' t h r:, .

\ , ~ Kidney ~ '

r---~,
/ , \ Ureter
\.
~ \Bladder

" · Urethra ~ - -....;;...,....; 1

"\ \ l' d
"
1"
, - ,,/

,I
(a) (b)
Fig. 7.3: Human Excretory System, (a) Female , (b) Male

Kidneys
Kidneys are the primary excret•ry organs.
• These are-aark rei in col• ur, bean-shaped and are about 10 cm long.
• These are paired ergans present in the abdomen uf hun1 an beings, just abov e th e wai~t,
on either si•e of the backbon e.
• Eac h kidney censists e f a large number of coiled tubes (about a million) called nephren s .
• The right kidney is slightly lower than the left one because of the large space occupie \.
by the liver.
0-'l,p/m1m i11°L' L'tl ll L·t l fun ctional Hnit s o_/ n kidn c~ . Thl'Y prnduce m ine which carric.., mrn'-; 1hc
nitn>~l'1h)1JS ll'C1sccs rlmi11,~h m eters tt11d b[<ick[er.

Ureters
• Ureter is a duct which arises from the inner side of each kidney .
• The ureters open obliquely into bladder. These act like valves and prevent the b ackflow
of urine \nto kidney.
Urinary Bladder
• Ureter arising from each kidney opens into a large, muscula r bag-like structure called\
urinary bladder. t
.r .
• It is situated in the pelvic cavity of human beings.
-----=-----_-_~_;:-_-_-----~-~-....:;.....:===a»

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urethra
• 1·1tc 11nn,,r y hL,d~ln 11 1'l'll,, lllll .~id l' llm 1111~l1 ;1 111u., rn l;1r 11,lw c ilkd
urethra .
muscle.
• llii~ i,il,l' 1,, \'l' I)' si 11 :dl ;!lid il s 11 1'l'lli11g is l'l'guhtll'd hy :1 sphincter
1
, · Y1 HI w1·11 ( lI)Sl' l'Vl' 1I1;11 tlf'L'd1r;1u( fcmalcs 1.,· much sm,tllc:r
N1111 1·1• 1h r h1 , 7. l l,··1r~ ·l't t II )' ·,tg,,.1111.
1h ,1ll rl w 111 :1ks.~ ;.-...-·
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,I ) , lll il ) i / l 1 % ' I I 1/)ll ltl) V Ii i/ ( ( 111 / 1'1 (/ l ljl \
1
/ , 111.d,'

FORMATION OF URINE
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l,inn:1111111 i11 lll1111 :111 hl'ill ,t.;s :1rl' :1s
How do kidney s form urine?
Mus t be a co mplica ted mechanism. ?L
•

f11ll1l\\'S:

• rlw w:1:-11' m:11ni:ds prnd11rcd in 1·hc body :11T ca rri ed by the blood to the kidneys .
• Tlw hl 111ll l rl':1(·lws kidneys :md ci rcul :1tes ;iruund nephrons.
filtered into the tubules
• I)min).! 1·it\'1il:1t i1111 , 1he waste products prl'Sl'l lt in rhe blood are
~,, ilw 11q1lm 111s.
e, salts and amino acids,
• I)urin,t.; l'iltr:11 i,111 , s1 1flll' Llf the useful products, such as water , glucos
.ds1 1 .!.!l' I ltlicrcd. These arc reabsorbed back into the blood
through the walls of the tubules.
• Till' (i 11 r:11 l' llhlVL'S rhru11gh the nephrons and enters the ureters.
• Tl11 :,; is :1 yr llnw-c11 luurcd liquid ;-md is called urine .
out.
• l lrn1t· cnl crs tlw urinary bladder anJ is stored there till expelled

Kidneys produce urine

• Ureters transport urine

Urinary bladder stores urine - -+--... .,

Urethra passes urine to outside

Fig. 7.4: Path of urine through the urinary system of human

beings

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• Each kidney contain s from one to two million nephrons.
• Kidneys filter about 180 litres of fluid in a day.
e form of urine while 178.5 litres of fluid
• About 1.5 litres of waste fluid is excreted from the body in th
is rea bsw bed in th e bloodstream .
hours.
• The blad~ ca n collect 300·400 ml of urine and hold for few
ey every five minutes .
• Entire blood present in the human body passes through kidn
• Even on e kidn ey ca n perform the excretion .

't
r _. Excretion in Human [kings
 Take a Break... __., J...
1. State wh ether the following statements are tru e or false.
(a) Th e left kidney is placed slightly lower in t he human abdome n th an t he right on e.
(b ) Ure ters ope n obl iq uely in to the bla dder for the smooth fl ow of uri ne into the bladd er.
(c) Urethra of fe males is much smalle r than the ma les.
(d) Urine is ye llow col oured and is stored into bl adder.
(e) The waste prod ucts present in t he blood are filtered into t he tu bules of t he neph ron s.

COM POSITION OF URINE

The charac teristic properties of urin e are as fo llmvs.
• The yellow colour of urine is due to the presence of a pigment called urochrome.
• It is usually acidic in nature with pH ranging from 5 to 8.
• When allowed to stand, it smells strongly because urea breaks down into ammonia by the
action of bacteri a.
• Volume of urine depends upon the fluid intake, level of phys ical activity and the atmospheric
temperature. Excess ive intake of water increases the volume of urine, whereas less water
intake, profuse sweating and heavy work or exercise reduces the volume of urine.

NORMALCONSTITUENTS OF URINE
Chemically, urine is composed of 95 % water and 5% organic and inorganic substances.
• Organic substances : urea, uric acid, creatinine, ammonia and hippuric acid.
• Inorganic substances: salts, such as chlorides, sulphates and phosphates of potassium,
calci um and magnesium.
Besides these, urine may also contain gases (CO2 ) in dissolved form , white blood cells and
some epithelial cells. The normal constituents of urine are given below.
Table 7.1: Normal Constituents of Uri ne

Organic Constituents Inorganic Constituents

(gm/litre) (gm/litre)
Urea 2.3 Sodium chloride 9.1
,
Creatinine 1.5 Potassium chloride 2.5
Uric acid 0.7 Sulphuric acid 1.1 '
Others 2.6 Ammonia l .i
Others 2.5

ABNORMAL CONSTITUENTS OF URINE

During disease or abnormal body condition, the urine may contain certain abnormal
constituents, indicating certain disorder in the body. Some of these constituents are as follows.

-~~~::::::::::::==::::;:=:::.::::: .,;i,- ~ . ..~. .

,v Exploring Biology-VII
>
• Presence of excess glucose in urine means excess sugar in blood .
Glucose
• It indicates that the person is suffering from diabetes m ell\tus .

• Presence of blood signifies kidney tumour or some infection in

the urinary tract.

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• Presence of albumin in blood may b e b ecause of high blood
Albumin
pressure or due to bacterial infection .

§334-fi Excretion of excess amount of urine can cause dehydrat\or\~ / . ~TA· 0

~
• Presence of bile pigments in urine indicates anaemia , jaund\ce
or liver disease.
l

A FEW COMM.e N DISODERS OF EXCRETORY SYSTEM:

K idn ey Ste n e s
H ave you ever heard of kidney sto ne s? Do you know wha t these a re?
• A kidney stone is a h a rd , crystalline mineral m a t eria l just lik e stL)ncs.
• Th ese can a lso be formed within the urinary tract.
• Presence of kidney sto n es causes a lo t of pclin . These c..m hurt kidnc -y ~H\1..1 n-my \.~:,J tr, \l,s:-.
of bloCitd in the urine.
• Fo rm at io n of kidn ey sto ne s m ay h e h1.: G\use of :-c,·cr;1\ r\..' ;b,.)n s; in L ,kl.' 1.,t water, \..\ict •,ff\d
h e redirnry factors, e tc .

Urin ary T r a~t Infec tio n (U T I)

Just lik e any other body part, th e cxc rl.:'tl 1 ty sys t\..' lll ( ;m ;1b1.1 <."~Heh infc c.\ tlH1 .
• The infec ti o n can occur i.n any part of the system, t h e kidneys , bladder n r ure thra .
• A s w e discussed earlier, the in foct in n s :u c m ore com mon .in women.
• Urinary tract infection may c a u ~e a lm nf r ain. increAsed urgg l\) urin ,He, f'l ili\\ v\'hi.k
urination and loss of blood in the urine.
• The infection in kidney may cause b ack pa in , n ause ..1, \'()miri ng an\.\ fe,· c r.

Kidney Damage

I learnt that if one kidney of an individ ual is d amaged,

the other kidney can do function of both the kid neys. But.
what will happen if both kidneys a re d amaged.

Excretion in Human Beings

~
 in t,he blood
1 t-e
~; t,h.
The wa ste produ ct-swill acc um
(I and it may lead to

~ l; ~ O
f rem ov a
I .f
L)
-cro oc n o us waste s from
n1 b •
d. lys ma ch ine .
is
he ard of dia lys is. Th is is the process
Yo u may h ave
.th da maged k 1·d n eys. I t ts . do n e by a ia b wh ich is sur ro un ded
. wi h l1 tube,,
t he bl.ood o f pa tie nts
. . oh cel lop ha ne tu e
fl ow s ch rou g t e
. . the bl ood of the pat ien t 1s pu mp ed thro uo a _ 1e blo od
In d1a lys 1s,
co the blood pla sm a. A s cl I d of rhe wa ste s4b sta nce$.
in com po siti o n l od c,ets c ea ne
by the fluid simila r I1e b O
o the flu id an d t t,

the wa ste products mo ve int cul ato ry sy 5t em .

the pa tie nt's cir
Th e blo od is the n ret urn ed to _ _ He mo dia lys er
,.........__
(wh ere filtering tak es pla ce)
Hemodialyser
machine

akXX:1 nows to dlalys er

Filtered blood
returning to body
Fig . 7.5: Proces..s of 0-;J.t;-s s

1. Sta te wh eth er the follow ing

sta tement s are tru e or tafs.e.
)
ure wit h pH r41ngmg fro m 8 to<
(a) Urine is usua lly acidic in nat
(b) Urea is the maJor exc retory
produc.t ,n hum~m bcin.g,
od o f th( ' pJt icn t thr ou gh a
cellop hane tub e.
olv e!J th e circulJ tio n of blo
(c) Dia lysi!> inv
un ne ind,c:.. ce, krdnt"y d;,ma
ge .
(d) Pre se nce of excess glucose In
s imd uri na ry bla dd er.
ction ctln occur on ty in ure ter
(e) Urinar y tract infe