AP: The renal system and blood pressure

A disturbance to homeostasis which causes a decrease in systolic pressure, such as a hemorrhage, leads to a reduced glomerlular filtratration rate. This reduction in rate causes less sodium to pass the juxtaglomerular apparatus. Juxtaglomerular cells sense this and cause the production of renin in the kidneys. Renin acts with a plasma protein, angiotensinogen, which is produced in the liver, to produce angiotensin I.

Angiotensin I reacts with angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), which is produced by the lung's epithelial cells, and produces angiotensin II. Angiotensin II activates chemoreceptors in the brain which cause the posterior pituitary gland to produce anti-diuretic hormone (ADH).

ADH binds with receptors on the cells of the collecting duct, causing aquaporins stored in a vesicle inside the cell to create channels in the cell membrane. Angiotensin II also causes the production of aldosterone by the adrenal glands. Aldosterone…