Essay On Thermoregulatory Homeostasis

Homeostasis is when the body maintains a constant balance through a series of monitored adjustments. Homeostasis must occur in animals in order for them to maintain a constant balance, despite the changes in the internal or external environment. Cells in animals are dependent on the internal and external environment in order for them to function. Homeostasis allows to the body to maintain a constant value in order for the cells to stay constant. An example of homeostasis is Thermoregulation. Thermoregulation is the ability of an organism to keep its blood temperature within a certain boundary, even though the surrounding temperature is very different. The purpose of the Thermoregulatory homeostatic control system is to balance thermal inputs and thermal losses in the body to maintain a relatively constant core temperature of
approximately 37°C. Humans are Endotherms who are able to maintain their own heat temperature and generate their own heat. From February 10th to March 30th, seven cyclists biked the length of New Zealand from Cape Reinga to Bluff, a total distance of 2277 km, for the 2018 Cancer Society Tour Aotearoa event.
During this event, the cyclists will undergo Thermoregulation to maintain the constant core temperature of 37°C despite the changes to the external and internal environment.

Components of this thermoregulatory homeostatic control system are the initiation event, stimulus, receptor, control centre, effector and the response. As seen in the thermoregulatory homeostatic control system diagram (Appendix 1). This system detects the changes in the temperature through negative feedback in the cyclists and will work until the steady state has been stored (37°C). Negative feedback are the changes in the system which causes the mechanisms to reverse the changes of the blood temperature back to ‘set point’. The initiation event is when there is a change in the external or internal environment. The stimulus is the change in the blood temperature from the initiation event. Change in blood temperature is then detected by the thermoreceptors. Thermoreceptors are located both in the skin and the Hypothalamus. The thermoreceptors
located in the skin are able to detect the change in temperature in the external environment (temperature on the skin) through sensors in the skin called the TRPV channels. The TRPV channels are a series of protein channels found in the plasma membrane which makes a channel in order for ions to cross the membrane. As a result, ions in the membrane will then cause an electrical change that will move the nerve cells along until it reaches the hypothalamus. The thermoreceptors of the hypothalamus are able to detect the change of the blood temperature. Both thermoreceptors send signals to the hypothalamus via the Afferent Nerves (nerves that transports signals from the skin to the hypothalamus) if the temperature of the skin or blood was above or below 37°C (‘set point’). The hypothalamus is the control centre and has 2 centres. The Posterior hypothalamus detects the decrease in blood temperature while the anterior hypothalamus will detect the increase in blood temperature. When the hypothalamus receives signals for a change from the ‘set point’ (a blood temperature other than 37°C), the hypothalamus will send response to the effectors via the Efferent nerves (which transports nerve impulses or hormonal messages from the hypothalamus to the different muscles) to reverse the effect of the change in temperature.