HAPS 08 Web-HUMAN Workshop
Simulating Renal Physiology


I. Workshop handouts / links

Most of the following materials were handed at out the workshop and are provided here as PDF's for your convenience. In each case the instructions are of the bare-bones how-to-do-it nature with analysis of the results taking place in the workshop itself.

*Note that web-HUMAN is a general systems physiology simulation of classical physiology and as such should be used with caution in any advanced physiological work.

A] An introduction to web-HUMAN, what it is and how to use it [ link ]

B] Filtration, Reabsorption and Excretion of Electrolytes [ sodium and potassium ]

A simple quantitative overview of renal function in which the student calculates the mass flows during filtration, excretion and reabsorption from data provided by interrogating the HUMAN model. The sheer size of the resulting numbers drive home that

1] the kidney handles enormous quantities of filtered load of all plasma constituents including electrolytes, sugars & amino acids, organic acids and bases and water.

2] virtually all the the mass flows of of the substances put into the tubules are reabsorbed thereby determining the final blood plasma concentrations of these substances.

RESOURCES

- Renal Handling of Electrolytes handout - pdf [ link ]
- Renal quantitative calculations
• Step 1 [ link ]
• Step 2 [ link ]
• Step 3 [ link ]
• Step 4 [ link ]
• Step 5 [ link ]

C] Renal response to induced metabolic alkalosis

Response of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system to an infusion of sodium bicarbonate.

RESOURCES

- Renal Response to Metabolic Alkalosis handout - pdf [ link ]
- Helpful figures for analysis
• tubular handling of acid [ link ]
• PCT Na reabsorption mechanisms [ link ]
• an acid-base balance diagram [ link ]
• an alternate acid-base diagram [ link ]

D] Renal response to renal artery stenosis

Renal artery stenosis is simulated in web-HUMAN and the development of the resulting systemic hypertension is followed and analyzed.

RESOURCES

- Renal Artery Stenosis and Resulting Hypertension - pdf [ link ]