The urinary system is comprised of the kidney, ureter, urinary bladder, and urethra. The kidney produces urine, which contains excess water, electrolytes and waste products of the body. It then flows down the ureter into the bladder where it is temporarily stored. The bladder is then emptied via the urethra.

The kidney has several important homeostatic, hormonal, and metabolic functions that include:

The kidney is composed of an outer cortex and inner medulla. Portions of the medulla extend into the cortex as the medullary rays, collections of straight renal tubules. The medulla contains multiple cone-shaped lobes, known as medullary pyramids. These urinary lobes are fused in the cortex. The urine drains into the renal pelvis, which is the initial part of the ureter. The hilum of the kidney is the site of entry and exit for renal artery, renal vein, and ureter.

The nephron is the structural and functional unit of the kidney. There are about two million nephrons in each kidney. Nephrons begin in the cortex; the tubules dip down to the medulla, then return to the cortex before draining into the collecting duct. The collecting ducts then descend towards the renal pelvis and empty urine into the ureter.

The components of a single nephron include:

Different sections of nephrons are located in different parts of the kidney:

Throughout the length of the nephron, capillaries called peritubular capillaries lie adjacent to all segments of the tubule. They originate from the efferent arteriole and are important for solute transport throughout the tubule.

The renal corpuscle is responsible for the filtration of the plasma. It contains two structures: the glormerulus and Bowman's capsule. The glomerulus is a cluster of capillary loops enclosed by Bowman's capsule, which is part of the renal tubule.

Bowman's capsule has two layers:

The space between the two layers is named Bowman's space, and this space contains the ultrafiltrate of plasma. The plasma has to pass through a filtration barrier of three layers to enter Bowman's space: the capillary endothelium, the podocyte layer, and their fused basement membrane. Bowman's space is continuous with the proximal convoluted tubule.

Blood enters the renal corpuscle via afferent arterioles and then leaves via efferent arterioles. The part of renal corpuscle where afferent and efferent arterioles are located is known as the vascular pole. On the opposite end of the vascular pole is where the renal tubule begins and is known as the urinary pole.

Mesangial cells can also be found within the glomerulus. These cells secrete a matrix of basement membrane-like material to support the structure of the glomerulus.

The proximal convoluted tubule is the first segment of renal tubule. It begins at the urinary pole of the glomerulus. This is where the majority (65%) of the glomerular filtrate is reabsorbed. The convoluted portion of the tubule leads into a straight segment that descends into the medulla within a medullary ray and becomes the loop of Henle.

The loop of Henle forms a hair-pin structure that dips down into the medulla. It contains four segments: the pars recta (the straight descending limb of proximal tubule), the thin descending limb, the thin ascending limb, and the thick ascending limb. The turn of the loop of Henle usually occurs in the thin segment within the medulla, and the tubule then ascends toward the cortex parallel to the descending limb. The end of the loop of Henle becomes the distal convoluted tubule near its original glomerulus. The loops of Henle run in parallel to capillary loops known as the vasa recta. Recall from Physiology that the loop of Henle serves to create high osmotic pressure in the renal medulla via the counter-current multiplier system. Such high osmotic pressure is important for the reabsorption of water in the later segments of the renal tubule.

The distal convoluted tubule is shorter and less convoluted than the proximal convoluted tubule. Further reabsorption and secretion of ions occur in this segment. The initial segment of the distal convoluted tubule lies right next to the glomerulus and forms the juxtaglomerular apparatus.

The juxtaglomerular apparatus is a specialized structure formed by the distal convoluted tubule and the glomerular afferent arteriole. It is located near the vascular pole of the glomerulus. The main function of the apparatus is the secretion of renin, which regulates systemic blood pressure via the renin-angiotensin-alodosterone system. The juxtaglomerular apparatus is composed of:

The terminal portion of the distal tubule empties through collecting tubules into a straight collecting duct in the medullary ray. The collecting duct system is under the control of antidiuretic hormone (ADH). When ADH is present, the collecting duct becomes permeable to water. The high osmotic pressure in the medulla (generated by the counter-current multiplier system/loop of Henle) then draws out water from the renal tubule, back to vasa recta.

Numerous collecting ducts merge into the renal pelvis, which then becomes the ureter. The ureter is a muscular tube, composed of an inner longitudinal layer and an outer circular layer. The lumen of the ureter is covered by transitional epithelium (also called urothelium). Recall from the Laboratory on Epithelia that the transitional epithelium is unique to the conducting passages of the urinary system. Its ability to stretch allows the dilation of the conducting passages when necessary. The ureter connects the kidney and the urinary bladder.

The ureter empties the urine into the bladder. The transitional epithelium continues over the surface of this organ. The thickened muscular layers become interwoven and cannot be clearly identified at this point.

The urethra carries the urine away from the bladder to the outside of the body. In the male, it is joined by the genital system. The epithelium changes from transitional to stratified or pseudostratified columnar in the urethra, and to stratified squamous in the distal end of the urethra.