Homeostasis and Response Flashcards
(101 cards)
What is homeostasis?
The maintenance of a constant internal environment.
What is a stimulus?
A change in your environment than requires a response. e.g Light, sound, touch, pressure, pain, chemical or temperature.
What do the receptors do?
Detect the stimulus or change in environment.
What happens after the receptors?
Receptors send messages to the CNS via the sensory neurone.
What makes up the central nervous system?
The brain or spinal cord
What is an effector?
Muscles or glands that bring about a response.
What do the muscles and glands do in response to stimuli?
Muscles contract and glands secrete chemical substances(hormones).
What is a sensory neurone?
A neurone that carry information from the receptors to the CNS.
What is a relay neurone?
Neurones that carry impulses from the sensory neurone to the motor neurone.
What is a motor neurone?
Neurones that carry information from the CNS to the effectors.
What is the nervous system?
It is a system that allows you to react to your surroundings.
How do signals travel across a synapse?
The chemical or neurotransmitter diffuses across the synapse and binds to a complementary receptor on the neurone (postsynaptic). This causes an electrical impulse to travel down the next neurone.
What is a synapse?
A gap between two neurones.
What is the thermoregulatory centre of the brain?
Near the hypothalamus, monitors the temperature of blood.
Describe the stages in a reflex arc.
Stimulus->Receptor->sensory neurone->CNS (relay neurone) -> motor neurone -> effector -> response
Name responses that reduce body temperature.
Hairs lie flat, sweat and blood vessels get wider(vasodilation)
What happens during vasodilation?
The blood vessels supplying the skin dilate (widen). This helps to transfer energy to the environment.
Name responses that increase body temperature.
Hairs stand up, no sweat, shivering and blood vessels constrict(vasoconstriction)
What happens during vasoconstriction?
The blood vessels supplying the skin constrict to close off the skins blood supply.
What is the body’s core temp?
37 degrees Celsius
What are hormones?
Chemical messengers that travel in the blood to target organs.
Compare and Contrast the endocrine (hormone) system and the nervous system.
Nervous is faster acting than the endocrine system.
Hormones have longer lasting effects compared to electrical impulses. Nerves act on a very specific area whereas hormones act more general.
What does the thyroid gland do?
Produces thyroxine which is involved in regulating metabolism.
What do the adrenal glands do?
Produce adrenaline which is used to prepare the body for fight or flight.