Biomedical Cybernetics
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Homeostasis of osmolarity in blood plasma and other body fluids like interstitium is referred to as osmoregulation. In mammalians a feedback control loop connecting posterior pituitary lobe and kidneys acts as main component of osmoregulation.


Osmoregulation


Information processing structure[]

In positive dependence from plasma osmolality the posterior pituitary lobe secrets the hormone ADH (also referred to as adiuretin or vasopressin). By stimulating water resorption in distal renal tubuli ADH decreases the osmolarity of body fluids again, thus closing the loop.

Diseases and disorders[]

Important disorders of osmoregulation are central diabetes insipidus (point a in the diagram), where posterior pituitary is not able to produce ADH and renal diabetes insipidus (point b in the diagram) which is caused by ADH-resistency (e. g. by mutation of V2-receptors or certain diseases of the kidney).

Diagnosis[]

Diagnostical procedures to test the feedback control's function are:

  • Determination of Osmolality in urine and plasma
  • Thirst test (point c in the diagram)
  • Carter-Robbins-Test (point d in the diagram)
  • Hickey-Hare-Test (point d in the diagram)
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