Download Activity 2: Feedback Mechanisms

Activity 2: Feedback Mechanisms
Maintaining homeostasis
• The endocrine system works with the nervous
system to keep the body in a stable condition.
• The nervous system sends signals to glands in the
endocrine system to either promote or inhibit the
secretion of hormones.
• The increased or decreased release of hormones
helps regulate:
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Heart rate
Cellular metabolism
Digestion
Sugar levels
Sexual Development
• This interaction between the nervous system
and endocrine system to maintain a stable
internal environment results in feedback
mechanisms.
• There are two types of feedback:
– Negative feedback
– Positive feedback
• We will be focusing more on negative feedback
mechanisms
Negative Feedback
• Negative feedback mechanisms are triggered
when a change occurs which disrupts normal
functions and conditions of the body. These
mechanisms try to bring the body back to its
normal state by reversing the change that
occurred.
Example: When it is cold outside,
our bodies undergo a shivering
process to heat up our bodies
Too little water in the blood
Too much water in the blood
Discussion Questions:
1. Does the nervous system or the endocrine system play the
larger role in regulating organ function in the human body?
Or do both play an equal part in this regulation? Based your
answer on the diagrams in the powerpoint.
2. You are a doctor and have just prescribed your patient a
new drug. Experiments conducted on the effectiveness of the
drug have found that many patients suffer from dehydration.
Using your knowledge of feedback mechanisms, provide one
explanation for how your patient could become dehydrated.
3. Make a prediction: What could be a possible solution to re-
Finish Early?
• In Unit 2, the big connection was made between the function
of a cell and that of a city.
Using the cell to city analogy, give an example of a structure in a
city that would be similar to:
- the endocrine system
- the nervous system
- hormones