Thermoregulatory Homeostatic Control System

Homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant internal environment of a cell or an organism, despite fluctuations in the external environment of that cell or organism. The internal environment is set to function at its optimum rate - and it is dependent on variables such as body temperature, blood pressure and blood sugar levels. These need to be maintained despite changes in the external environment as well as the extent of activity and the diet of the organism. These variables are controlled by homeostatic mechanisms.

Thermoregulation is an aspect of homeostasis that is the ability of an organism to keep its body temperature within certain boundaries, despite surrounding temperatures being very different. Thermoregulation processes thermal
The stimulus is an event that evokes a specific reaction in an organism. In this case, the stimulus is a change in external temperature that the organism is exposed to for a prolonged duration - enough for the organisms core temperature to either increase or decrease. The change in temperature will be identified by the two receptors involved in thermoregulation; the hypothalamus and the peripheral thermoreceptors. The peripheral thermo-receptor is located in the dermal layer of the skin and is able to detect a change in external temperatures - which is the stimulus. The hypothalamus is a portion of the brain that is the control centre for thermoregulation. Thermo-receptors on the anterior region of the hypothalamus are able to detect the change in blood temperature. As these receptors detect the change in temperature - derailing from the set point of 36.7C, the hypothalamus is able to launch a response to resolve the stimulus. The effectors are what acts as a response to the stimulus. Effectors receive a message from the hypothalamus through nerve impulses and hormonal messages to the appropriate area of the body - depending on the stimulus. Messages may be released to the smooth muscle in the arterioles, sweat glands, arrector pili muscles, skeletal muscles, adrenal and thyroid glands. The smooth muscle is able to counteract
Cell in the brain may gain the inability to communicate with one another or with parts of the body. Resulting in confusion, fatigue, and unconsciousness. This is identified by as hypothermia and will occur if thermoregulation doesn’t retain equilibrium. If the core temperature is risen too high for an extended period of time, the enzymes may become irreversibly denatured, losing their shape furthermore ceasing the function. It is also certain if the human body reaches temperatures over 44C, the damage would result in death. Stopping cell function through the breakdown of enzyme catalysed metabolic pathways, resulting in the death of the organism. The peripheral thermoreceptors are normally first to identify a change in temperature when in hot conditions which the hypothalamus is able to identify later as the blood temperature increases. The hot receptors should detect a rise in core temperature above 37.5C and sends the information to the hypothalamus through nerve impulses. The hypothalamus is able to identify the change in temperature and sends the appropriate signal to the effectors involved in this process; the blood vessels; the sweat glands; and the arrector pili muscles. The hot conditions are targeted against by arteriolar vasodilation. This is the blood