Organs & Organ Systems

Four Tissue Types

• Our organs are composed of combinations
of the four major categories of tissues:

– Muscle tissue
– Nervous tissue
– Epithelial tissue
– Connective tissue
 Organs
• An organ is composed of two or more tissues
that serve different functions in the organ
• The skin is the largest organ in the body
– The skin has all four primary tissues
• Examples of other organs include
– Heart
– Liver
– Brain
– Stomach
 Organ Systems
• Organs that perform related functions are
grouped into systems
• Organ systems work together and perform
vital body functions
 Skeletal system:
supports body and
anchors muscles
Bone

Cartilage

Skeletal
System
 3 types of muscle tissue:
1. Skeletal muscle
2. Smooth muscle
Muscular system: 3. Cardiac muscle
moves the body
Skeletal muscles

Muscular System
 Cardio-Vascular System
The cardiovascular system is made up of
three interrelated components:

1. blood
2. heart
3. blood vessels
THE ROLE OF THE HEART

To provide continuous flow of blood through

the tissues so that the blood can carry out the
transportation of gases and nutrients as well
as communication among various cells,
tissues and organs of the body.
Single Circulation

For a fish, the blood passes

through the heart once in each
circuit.

Blood pumped from the ventricle

travels  gill capillaries (↓BP) 
artery (O2 from gills)  fishes
organs  heart.

The fish's swimming movements

also help move the blood
through the body..
DOUBLE CIRCUIT, 3 CHAMBERED HEART

For frogs, the right atrium (low O2)  one

ventricle  lungs and skin.

Gas exchange can occur in the lungs and thin

moist skin, this is called 'pulmocutaneous
circuit'.

Then blood (high O2 left atrium and the

blood from 2 atria mixes in the single ventricle
but there is a ridge that will divert the oxygen
rich blood to the systemic circuit.

For turtles, snakes and lizards, they have 3

chambered hearts but the ventricle is partially
divided (less mixing of blood).

For crocodiles, the ventricle is completely

divided.
DOUBLE CIRCUIT, 4 CHAMBERED
HEART

In birds and mammals, there are 4

chambered hearts (2 atria and 2
ventricles).

The right heart handles deoxygenated

blood and the left heart pumps
oxygenated blood.

The 4 chambered heart is necessary for

the high metabolic rates of birds and
mammals who are endothermic (warm
blooded).
 Circulatory system:
transports substances
throughout body

Heart

Blood vessels
 Pulmonary and Systemic Circulations
• Pulmonary circulation is
path of blood from right
ventricle through lungs
and back to heart
• Systemic circulation is
path of blood from left
ventricle to body and
back to heart
• Rate of flow through
systemic circulation =
flow rate thru pulmonary
circuit

[Link]
 Composition of Blood
• Consists of formed elements (cells) suspended and
carried in plasma (fluid part)
• When centrifuged, blood separates into heavier
formed elements on bottom and plasma on top
Respiratio
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
 Food is needed to provide the nutrients required
to keep normal structure and function of the
body.

Food contains:
• Water
• Inorganic salts
• Carbohydrates,
• Proteins
• Lipids
• Vitamins
1. Carbohydrates and fats provide most of
the fuel that is needed in order to function
everyday.
2. Proteins are used for growth and
constant repair of the body tissue.
3. Inorganic salts play a role in certain body
processes
4. Vitamins are essential for normal growth
and development.
 The gastrointestinal system (GIS) is made up of the
gastrointestinal tract and accessary organs.

The gastrointestinal tract is made up of the following:

1. mouth
2. pharynx
3. oesophagus
4. stomach
5. small intestine
6. large intestine
7. rectum
Digestive system:
breaks down food
and absorbs
nutrients
Mouth

Esophagus

Liver

Stomach
Large intestine

Small intestine

Anus
Earthworm
• Food  oesophagus  crop  gizzard
which breaks food down with the help of
small bits of sand and gravel.

Birds
3 separate chambers
(crop, stomach and gravel filled gizzard)
where food is broken down.
• Food move  alimentary canal by ‘peristalsis’
(contraction and relaxation of the smooth
muscles)

• Muscular ring like valves = ‘sphincters’ which

regulate the movement of food from one place
to another.

• Food  5-10 seconds  oesophagus 

stomach.
• Food  stomach  2-6 hours
• Food  small intestine  5-6 hours
• Undigested food  large intestine  12-24
hours.
• Natural selection  animals adapt to the type
of food that they eat.
• Carnivores have large expandable stomachs
 catch a prey  eat as much as they can
• A lion can eat 40kg of meat in one meal and
may not hunt again for a few days.

• Herbivores and omnivores have longer

alimentary canals than carnivores.
• Vegetation is harder to break down  more
time to digest and absorb it.
• Most herbivores have special chambers +
high numbers of bacteria and protists
• Microbes  cellulose to simple sugars.
For rabbits and rodent
• Some nutrients lost in the faeces so they eat some of
their faeces so that they can be reabsorbed through the
small intestine.
• When the animals defaecate 2nd time, the faeces are
more compact and are not eaten again.
--------------------------------
Ruminants’ (e.g. cattle, sheep and deer)
• Have stomachs which has 4 chambers which contain
symbiotic microbes.
• A cow will regurgitate its food from the first 2 chambers
 chews the ‘cud’  surface area  microbes 
break down  plant fibers.
• The cud  swallowed  last stomach chamber where
digestion is completed.
• Microbes also digested but they can reproduce very
quickly.
All animals must eat in order to:

[Link] all body activities (i.e. energy)

[Link] organic molecules to build the

animals own molecules to maintain cell
structure and function.

[Link] essential nutrients since the animal

cannot make it for itself.
 Respiratory System

The process of exchanging oxygen (O2)

and carbon dioxide (CO2) between an
organism and the environment.
• Some animals use their entire outer skin as a gas
exchange organ e.g. earthworm.

• O2  thin walled capillaries (beneath the skin).

• Earthworms and other skin breathers need to live in

moist places or in water because their whole body
surface has to stay moist.

The animals that breathe

only through their skin tend
to be small, long, thin or flat
(high surface area to body
volume)  enough gas
exchange for all the body
cells.
For other animals, they either
have:

1. Gills,
2. Tracheal systems
3. Lungs.
GILLS

• For fishes that have gills, which are found on each

side of the head where the gas diffuses across the
gill surface between the water and the blood.

• The advantage of breathing in water is that there is

no problem of keeping the respiratory surfaces
moist but amount of O2 dissolved in water is about
3%.

• The warmer and more salty the water is, the less O2
it can hold so active fish and squids in warm oceans
must be able to obtain enough O2 from the water.
• There are 4 gill arches on each side of the body.

• Two rows of gill filaments project from each gill.

• Each filament has lots of flat plates called ‘lamellae’

which are the actual respiratory surfaces.

• A lamella contains lots of capillaries (smallest blood

vessel) that are so narrow that only one red blood cell
can pass through in a single file.

• When O2  red blood cell.

• Fishes  open their mouth  water gills

• Pump water across the gills by opening and closing their

mouth.
• Blood inside the gill flows in an opposite
direction from water movement = > efficient
process of obtaining O2.
• This is called ‘countercurrent exchange’.
• This name means that two fluids are moving
counter to each other
• As blood move through the lamella, it picks up
more and more O2  concentration gradient
which favours diffusion of O2 from the water
along the length of the capillary (from high
concentration to low concentration).
• This countercurrent exchange is so efficient
that gills can take more than 80% of the O2
from the water that flows through.
THE TRACHEAL SYSTEM
• Breathing in air contains more O2 than water.
• Uses less energy but there is a loss of water by
evaporation.
• Insects have tracheal system = tiny branching tubes
inside the body which reduces evaporation of water.
• Largest tubes = ‘tracheae’ are open to the outside
and have reinforced rings made of ‘chitin’.
• Smallest branches = ‘tracheoles’  every cell and
have closed ends that contain fluid.

• O2  tracheae  tracheoles  moist epithelium that

lines these tips.
• The insects’ circulatory system is not
involved in transporting gases.

• For larger insects, in order to bring in

enough O2, they have rhythmic body
movements that compress and expand the
air tubes.

• For insects that fly, have high metabolic

rate and needs 10-200 times more O2 than
at rest.
LUNGS

• Lungs  chest or thoracic cavity which is

protected by a rib cage.
• A sheet of muscle = ‘diaphragm’ which
separates the abdominal cavity and the chest.
• Diaphragm which helps ventilate the lungs.
• Air  nostrils where the nasal hairs filter out
dust etc, warm and humidify the air (and we
smell at the same time).
• Air  mouth but this is unfiltered.
• Air  ‘pharynx’ where air and food enter,
towards the ‘larynx’ into the ‘trachea’ (windpipe).
 Two main events of Respiration:

1. Gas Exchange –
• Ventilation – moving air in/out of lungs
• Gas diffusion/uptake
• Gas transport by the blood

2. Cellular Respiration –
• Muscle contraction needs energy so food is
broken down, burned with O2 (oxidation).
• Metabolic reactions that break down
molecules of fuel, releasing CO2 and energy.
 Respiratory system:
exchanges O2 and CO2
between blood and air
Nasal cavity
Pharynx Larynx

Trachea
Bronchus

Lung
• Respiration =‘aerobic harvesting of energy
from food molecules’.
• Mitochondria use O2 in cellular respiration
to harvest energy from glucose to generate
ATP.
• During cellular respiration CO2 is produced
• With food and oxygen, our cells would be
able to harvest the energy to perform body
functions e.g. muscle cells use ATP to
contract.
The chemical energy of the bonds
in glucose is released and stored
in the chemical bonds of ATP.
RENAL SYSTEM
WASTE DISPOSAL

• Waste disposal is a crucial aspect of osmoregulation

because most metabolic waste must be dissolved in
water before removal.

• Metabolism  products which are toxic e.g.

nitrogenous waste (from breaking down proteins and
nucleic acids)

• NH2 (organic amine compound) are removed from

amino acids and nucleic acids  NH3 (toxic) but it is
highly soluble and can diffuse quickly across cell
membranes.
Fishes or animals surrounded by water
NH3 can diffuse out of the cell and body
Fishes excrete it mainly across their gills

Invertebrates
e.g. planarians excrete NH3 across their
whole body surface.

• For land animals, NH3 is so toxic it must be transported and

excreted in very dilute solutions so animals convert NH3 to
a less toxic compound i.e. urea or uric acid which can now
be safely transported, stored or excreted by the kidneys
(this requires energy though).
• Urea is produced in the liver (NH3 + CO2)

• Blood (urea)  kidneys.

• Urea is 100,000 times less toxic than NH3

• Some animals can excrete NH3

• Some animals excrete urea depending on the

environmental conditions

e.g. Toad tadpoles (water) can excrete

NH3 to save energy. When they
become toad adults, they excrete mainly
urea.
• Certain animals e.g. insects, land snails, some
reptiles and birds can excrete ‘uric acid’ which
avoids the water loss problem.

• Uric acid is insoluble in water and is excreted as a

semi-solid paste (e.g. birds white droppings is uric
acid, which is why their faeces can damage paint
on cars).

However excreting uric acid takes

more energy than to excrete urea
but the advantage is that is saves
water.
 Function of Kidneys
1 Regulation of water and inorganic ion balance (e.g. salt and
water)
2 Removal of metabolic waste products from the blood (e.g.
urea, Hb breakdown)
3 Removal of foreign chemicals from the blood (e.g. drugs,
pesticides)
4 Gluconeogenesis (converting amino acids/fats to glucose)

5 Secreting hormones or enzyme:

• Erythropoietin: a hormone which controls RBC
production
• Renin: an enzyme which controls formation of angiotensin
(protein) which influences blood pressure and sodium balance
• Calcitriol: a hormone which influences calcium balance
Urinary system:
rids body of
certain wastes

Kidney

Urinary
Ureter bladder
Urethra
 NERVOUS SYSTEM

1. The NS provides us the information from

the outside world (such as light, sounds,
taste and touch).

2. It keeps our body in a homeostatic

condition in order for optimal functioning (
lets our brain know what is happening with
the rest of the body).
 Nervous system:
processes sensory Brain
information
and controls Sense organ
responses (ear)
Spinal cord

Nerves
 ENDOCRINE SYSTEM

Endocrine system are a set of specialized glands or

tissues that manufacture and secrete hormones.

What is a Hormone?

A hormone is a chemical that transfers information

and instructions between cells in animals.
 Hormones Function can be in any
of these 4 groups:

1. Growth and development,

2. Control the function of various tissues,

3. Support reproductive function

4. Regulate metabolism (the process used to

break down food to create energy).
Endocrine system:
secretes hormones
that regulate body
Hypothalamus
Pituitary gland
Parathyroid gland
Thyroid gland
Adrenal gland
Ovary
Pancreas (female)

Testis (male)
REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM -1

1. The Male

2. The Female

3. The effects of nerves and hormones

Reproductive system:
produces gametes
and offspring

Seminal vesicles
Prostate gland
Oviduct Vas deferens
Ovary Penis
Uterus
Urethra
Vagina

Testis
MALE ANATOMY
• PENIS ( urethra, erectile tissue and
blood vessels)

• SCROTUM ( testes, epididymis,

spermatic cord and vas deferens).
 FEMALE ANATOMY

The major reproductive functions are:

1. secretion of sex hormones

2. production of ova
3. gestation and delivery of the foetus
 FERTILIZATION
For fertilization to
occur, both sperm
and ova have to be
present in the
female
reproductive tract
during the 72 hours
before or 15 hours
after ovulation.

Pathway of the ovum through the fallopian tube

External fertilization
Occurs in many fishes and
amphibians

Gametes (egg or sperm) 

water.

No physical contact.

If the environmental cues are

right  can release all gametes
all at once.

One can release gametes and a

chemical signal stimulates
opposite sex to release their
gametes.

Some e.g. when a male frog

clasps onto a female frog.
Integumentary
system:
protects body
Hair

Skin
Nail
 Lymphatic and
immune system:
defends against
disease

Thymus

Spleen

Lymph nodes

Lymphatic
vessels

Summary video
 Homeostasis
and
Feedback Control
 Homeostasis
• Homeostasis is the body’s ability to stay
relatively unchanged even when the world
around it changes
• Homeostasis is constancy of the internal
environment
• The main purpose of our physiological
mechanisms is to maintain homeostasis
• Deviation from homeostasis indicates disease
 Negative Feedback
– Most mechanisms of homeostasis depend on a
principle called negative feedback
• in which the results of a process inhibit that
same process
• such as a thermostat that turns off a heater
when room temperature rises to the set point
 Response:
Heating Thermostat
stops (control center)
turns heater off

Room Stimulus:
temperature Room
drops temperature
is above set point

Set point:
Room temperature
20°C (68°F)

Room Stimulus:
temperature Room
rises temperature
is below set point

Response: Thermostat
Heating (control center)
starts turns heater on
 Response: Control center
Skin in brain activates
1. Blood
vessels dilate cooling
Sweat 2. Sweat is mechanisms
gland produced

Body Stimulus:
temperature Body
drops temperature
is above set point

Set point:
Body temperature
near 37°C (98.6°F)

Stimulus:
Body Body
temperature temperature
rises is below set point

Skin Response:
1. Blood vessels
constrict
Control center
2. Person shivers
in brain activates
3. Metabolic rate
warming
increases
mechanisms
Control of Hormone Secretions

Normal Range of glucose in blood: 70-100mg/dl

Endocrine1 88
 Positive Feedback
• Less common is positive feedback
• The results of a process intensify that same
process
• Positive feedback does not work alone and can
contribute to many negative feedback loops
 Positive Feedback
• Blood clot formation – if a blood vessel is
damaged, a process is to form a clot. Once the
damage is fixed, clotting ends (negative
feedback). However, the process of forming the
clot involves positive feedback.
• Childbirth – the strength of uterine contractions
during childbirth is also regulated by a positive
feedback loop