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AP Biology College Board Your notes
4.5 Feedback
Contents
T he Role of Feedback Mechanisms
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The Role of Feedback Mechanisms
Your notes
Feedback Mechanisms
The process of maintaining a constant internal environment is known as homeostasis
Homeostasis relies on monitoring information received back from the body, known as feedback
Acting on feedback information ensures that conditions inside the organism are kept within
preset limits
Homeostasis is critically important for organisms as it ensures the maintenance of optimal
conditions for enzyme action and cell function
Sensory cells can detect information about the conditions inside and outside the organism; if
conditions have changed then the organism can respond to keep conditions constant
Examples of physiological factors that are controlled by homeostatic feedback in mammals
include
Core body temperature
Blood pH
Concentration of glucose in the blood
Osmotic concentration of the blood
Feedback (positive) can also act to bring about a specific event; Examples include:
Ovulation
Labor in childbirth
Lactation in mammals
Ripening of fruit
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Feedback Mechanisms
The majority of homeostatic control mechanisms in organisms use negative feedback loops to Your notes
achieve homeostasis
Negative feedback mechanisms work to return values to a set point; they reverse the effects
of any change within a system
Negative feedback loops are essential for maintaining conditions within set limits; this is not
the case in positive feedback mechanisms which instead amplify any change
Negative feedback control loops involve:
A receptor – receptor cells detect change in a physiological factor
A coordination system – the brain and nervous system transfer information between
different parts of the body
An effector – the muscles and glands bring about a response
Outcome of a negative feedback loop:
The factor / stimulus is continuously monitored
If there is an increase in the factor, the body responds to make the factor decrease
If there is a decrease in the factor, the body responds to make the factor increase
A Generalized Feedback Loop Flowchart
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Your notes
An example of a generalized (negative) feedback loop
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Negative Feedback Mechanisms
Regulation of Blood Glucose Your notes
It is essential that blood glucose concentration is kept within narrow limits
Glucose is an essential fuel for respiration, so it is important that blood glucose levels do
not drop too low
Glucose is soluble, so blood glucose concentration affects the osmotic balance between
the cells and the blood
The control of blood glucose concentration is a key part of homeostasis
Blood glucose concentration is controlled by two hormones which are secreted into the blood
by specializ ed tissue in the pancreas
This tissue is made up of groups of cells known as the islets of Langerhans
The islets of Langerhans contain two cell types:
α cells that secrete the hormone glucagon
β cells that secrete the hormone insulin
These α and β cells are involved with monitoring and responding to blood glucose levels
Insulin Secretion by the Pancreas Diagram
The islets of Langerhans form the endocrine tissue of the pancreas, while the exocrine tissue is involved
with the production of digestive enzymes
The Effects of Insulin
Blood glucose concentration increases after a meal that contains carbohydrate
This increase in blood glucose is detected by the β cells in the pancreas, which synthesiz e and
secrete insulin
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Insulin is transported in the blood to target cells all over the body
Insulin's main target cells are in the liver and muscles
The effects of insulin include: Your notes
Glucose channels in cell surface membranes open, and glucose moves out of the blood
and into the body cells by facilitated diffusion
Liver and muscle cells convert excess glucose into glycogen to be stored; this is
glycogenesis
An increase in the rate of respiration, using up glucose
Conversion of glucose to fatty acids, resulting in fat storage
Insulin lowers blood glucose concentration
The Effects of Glucagon
Glucagon is synthesiz ed and secreted by α cells when blood glucose falls
Blood glucose could fall after a period of fasting, or after exercise
Glucagon is transported in the blood to target cells
The effects of glucagon include:
The activation of enzymes that enable the hydrolysis of glycogen in liver and muscle cells,
releasing glucose that enters the blood; this is glycogenolysis
A decrease in the rate of respiration
Amino acids are converted to glucose; this is gluconeogenesis
Glucagon increases blood glucose concentration
Regulation of Blood Glucose Diagram
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Your notes
Blood glucose is regulated by insulin and glucagon
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Exam Tip
Your notes
The terms glucagon and glycogen are very often mixed up by students as they sound similar.
Remember:
Glucagon is the hormone
Glycogen is the storage polysaccharide of animal cells
Learn the differences between the spellings and what each one does so you do not get
confused in the exam!
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Negative Feedback Mechanisms
Diabetes Your notes
Diabetes is a condition in which the homeostatic control of blood glucose has failed or
deteriorated
The insulin function of diabetic individuals is disrupted which allows the glucose concentration
in the blood to rise
The kidneys are unable to filter out this excess glucose in the blood and so it often appears in
the urine
The increased glucose concentration also causes the kidneys to produce large volumes of
urine, making the individual feel thirsty due to dehydration
Glucose remains in the blood rather than entering the cells, so cellular respiration is reduced,
resulting in fatigue
If the blood glucose concentration reaches a dangerously high level after a meal then organ
damage can occur
There are two different types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2
Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is a condition in which the pancreas fails to produce sufficient insulin to control
blood glucose levels
It normally begins in childhood due to an autoimmune response whereby the body’s immune
system attacks the β cells of the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas
The damage to the β cells means that insulin production can no longer take place, and blood
glucose concentration can therefore not be regulated
Type 1 diabetes is normally treated with regular blood tests, insulin injections and a modified diet
Such a diet may involve a reduction in carbohydrate intake
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is more common than type 1, and usually develops in older adults
In type 2 diabetes the pancreas still produces insulin but the cell membrane receptors to which
insulin binds have reduced in number or no longer respond
The inability of cells to respond to insulin can be described as insulin resistance
The pancreas will attempt to compensate for this by secreting more and more insulin; eventually
insulin production will no longer be able to compensate for the reduced cellular response
There is a reduced glucose uptake which leads to uncontrolled high blood glucose
concentration
Type 2 diabetes is managed by
Medication to lower blood glucose
A low carbohydrate diet
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Any food that is rapidly digested into sugar will cause a sudden, dangerous spike in
blood sugar
An exercise regime that lowers blood glucose Your notes
Obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes; the overproduction of insulin in response to a
high carbohydrate diet triggers the development of insulin resistance
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes table
Type 1 Type 2
Cells of the body become
Inability of pancreas to resistant to insulin or
Cause
produce insulin insufficient insulin produced
by the pancreas
Monitoring blood glucose
levels and injecting human Maintain a low-carbohydrate
Treatment insulin throughout the day diet and regular exercise to
(particularly after meals reduce need for insulin
consumed)
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Positive Feedback Mechanisms
Positive Feedback in Fruit Ripening Your notes
The production of ethylene in fruits is an example of a positive feedback loop
In positive feedback loops, the original stimulus produces a response that causes the factor
to deviate even more from the normal range
They enhance the effect of the original stimulus
Positive feedback generally culminates in a singular event
Ethylene (named ethene by International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, IUPAC) is a gas
produced by fruit during the later stages of fruit ripening
The gas can diffuse from one fruit to neighboring fruit which triggers further release of ethylene
The effect is that all fruit ripens at the same time
Ethylene Positive Feedback Loop Diagram
The production of ethylene is an example of a positive feedback loop
Positive Feedback in Labor
Oxytocin (secreted in the pituitary gland) stimulates contractions of the muscles in the
myometrium
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Oxytocin is released by the pituitary gland in the brain
Stretch receptors in the cervix detect the contractions and signal the pituitary gland to increase
oxytocin secretion Your notes
More oxytocin creates further contractions, which in turn signal for further release of oxytocin in
this positive feedback loop
This process increases the contractions slowly and rhythmically
The process leads to the singular event of childbirth
Positive Feedback in Labor & Childbirth Diagram
The positive feedback loop stimulates the release of oxytocin and causes the contraction of the uterus
wall
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Exam Tip
Your notes
It's a useful contrast to think that:
Negative feedback keeps a parameter constant, in control
Positive feedback amplifies a factor and leads to a distinct event
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