Unit 4: Topic 5 - Feedback

Question 1

What is homeostasis? Identify what mechanisms help regulate/affect it.

Answer 1

Homeostasis is when an internal environment is at equilibrium and stable. Negative and positive feedback mechanisms help regulate homeostasis.

Question 2

What are the two types of feedback mechanisms and their different purposes?

Answer 2

The two types of feedback mechanisms are positive and negative. Positive feedback uses a product of a biological process as the amplified input to another. Negative feedback uses a product of a biological process to end the process. Both mechanisms aim to maintain the organism’s internal environment and respond to changes in their environments to achieve homeostasis.

Question 3

What is an example of a negative feedback mechanism maintaining homeostasis at the cellular or molecular level?

Answer 3

Any example in which a process returns the system/organism back to normal/homeostasis. Some examples include temperature regulation, blood sugar regulation, and osmoregulation.

Question 4

What is an example of a positive feedback mechanism affecting homeostasis at the cellular or molecular level?

Answer 4

Any example in which a process or response is amplified to initiate an additional response changing the system and moving it away from its equilibrium/homeostasis. Some examples include fruit ripening, blood clotting, and childbirth.