The microscopic unit of the kidney that consists of a glomerulus (a filtering funnel made up of a cluster of capillaries) and a tubule. There are about 1 million nephrons in each kidney. The nephrons filter waste products from the blood and modify the amount of salt and water excreted in urine, according to the body’s needs. This process involves filtration of blood in the glomerulus followed by further processing as the filtrate flows through the various parts of the tubule – the proximal convoluted tubule, loop of Henle, and the distal convoluted tubule.
Nephron |
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