Free Kidney and Urinary System MCQs with Answers

121 Kidney and Urinary System MCQs from Biology, each with the correct answer and a written explanation of why it is correct. Free and unlimited, with no account needed.

The kidney and urinary system remove nitrogenous wastes, regulate water and ion balance, and help maintain blood pH through filtration, selective reabsorption and secretion. Questions cover nephron structure, ultrafiltration, the loop of Henle, collecting ducts, urine formation and the roles of ADH and aldosterone, while distinguishing excretion from egestion.

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121 questions · page 2 of 7

  • A. 25 degrees Celsius
  • B. 30 degrees Celsius
  • C. 37 degrees Celsius
  • D. 42 degrees Celsius

Explanation: Enzymes of the body work best near 37 degrees, and the hypothalamus holds temperature within a degree of this set point.

Correct answer: 37 degrees Celsius
Easy
  • A. endotherms
  • B. homeotherms
  • C. warm blooded animals
  • D. ectotherms

Explanation: Ectotherms gain heat from outside sources and so track ambient temperature, whereas endotherms generate their own heat metabolically.

Correct answer: ectotherms
Moderate
  • A. constrict, reducing heat loss from the surface
  • B. dilate widely to warm the skin
  • C. burst under pressure
  • D. stop carrying blood altogether

Explanation: Vasoconstriction keeps warm blood in the core, which is why skin looks pale in the cold.

Correct answer: constrict, reducing heat loss from the surface
Easy
  • A. shivering thermogenesis
  • B. behavioural thermoregulation
  • C. chemical heat production
  • D. evaporative cooling

Explanation: Since reptiles cannot raise temperature metabolically, they move between sun and shade to manage it.

Correct answer: behavioural thermoregulation
Easy
  • A. producing heat through metabolism
  • B. increasing blood flow to the surface
  • C. insulating the body against heat loss
  • D. absorbing sunlight

Explanation: Subcutaneous fat conducts heat poorly, so it keeps core warmth in, which is why marine mammals carry thick blubber.

Correct answer: insulating the body against heat loss
Moderate
  • A. panting draws cold air into the lungs
  • B. dogs sweat heavily from the skin
  • C. panting raises the metabolic rate
  • D. evaporation from the tongue and airways removes heat

Explanation: With few sweat glands, dogs rely on evaporating water from the moist surfaces of the mouth and lungs.

Correct answer: evaporation from the tongue and airways removes heat
Moderate
  • A. negative feedback
  • B. positive feedback
  • C. hormonal rhythm
  • D. conditioned reflex

Explanation: Any deviation from the set point triggers responses that reverse it, the defining feature of negative feedback.

Correct answer: negative feedback
  • A. brain
  • B. liver and other metabolically active organs
  • C. skin
  • D. bones

Explanation: The liver's constant metabolism releases enough heat at rest to dominate body warmth, while during hard exercise skeletal muscle takes…

Correct answer: liver and other metabolically active organs
Fairly easy
  • A. hyperthermia
  • B. fever
  • C. hypothermia
  • D. heat stroke

Explanation: Hypothermia slows enzymes and eventually the heart, and it is treated by gradual rewarming.

Correct answer: hypothermia
Easy
  • A. undigested food from the intestine
  • B. excess water only
  • C. dead cells from the skin surface
  • D. metabolic waste products formed in the cells

Explanation: True excretion eliminates substances made by metabolism, such as urea and CO2.

Correct answer: metabolic waste products formed in the cells
  • A. lungs
  • B. kidneys
  • C. liver
  • D. skin

Explanation: CO2 diffuses into the alveoli and is breathed out, so the lungs are the principal organ of its removal.

Correct answer: lungs
Fairly easy
  • A. kidney
  • B. liver
  • C. lungs
  • D. intestine

Explanation: The liver runs the ornithine cycle, turning toxic ammonia from amino acid breakdown into urea, which the kidneys then filter out.

Correct answer: liver
  • A. too large a molecule to transport
  • B. highly toxic even in low concentrations
  • C. needed for protein synthesis
  • D. insoluble in water

Explanation: Ammonia raises pH and poisons cells, particularly neurons, so it must be detoxified at once.

Correct answer: highly toxic even in low concentrations
Moderate
  • A. glucose and protein
  • B. urea and hormones
  • C. amino acids and fats
  • D. mineral salts and a little urea

Explanation: Sweat is mostly water with dissolved salts and traces of urea, so sweating causes both water and salt loss that must be replaced.

Correct answer: mineral salts and a little urea
Moderate
  • A. excreting urea through the stomata
  • B. sweating from the leaves
  • C. releasing ammonia through the roots
  • D. storing wastes in leaves that later fall

Explanation: Plants lack excretory organs, so they deposit wastes as resins, crystals or in old leaves that are then shed.

Correct answer: storing wastes in leaves that later fall
Very hard
  • A. is almost insoluble in water, so very little water is lost
  • B. is highly soluble in water
  • C. is converted to urea in the cloaca
  • D. is released as a gas

Explanation: Precipitating uric acid saves water and keeps the egg clean, since an embryo sealed in a shell cannot dilute soluble wastes.

Correct answer: is almost insoluble in water, so very little water is lost
Fairly easy
  • A. uricotelic
  • B. ammonotelic
  • C. ureotelic
  • D. phototelic

Explanation: Mammals and adult amphibians are ureotelic, balancing toxicity against water cost.

Correct answer: ureotelic
Moderate
  • A. regular blood transfusions only
  • B. a heart lung machine
  • C. dialysis or a kidney transplant
  • D. a high protein diet

Explanation: Dialysis artificially filters wastes from the blood while a transplant can restore real function.

Correct answer: dialysis or a kidney transplant
Moderate
  • A. Nephron
  • B. Neuron
  • C. Glomerulus
  • D. Collecting duct

Explanation: The nephron is the functional unit of the kidney, consisting of glomerulus, tubules, and associated structures.

Correct answer: Nephron
Moderate
  • A. Proximal convoluted tubule
  • B. Bowman's capsule
  • C. Loop of Henle
  • D. Collecting duct

Explanation: Ultrafiltration occurs in the glomerulus/Bowman's capsule, where blood is filtered under pressure.

Correct answer: Bowman's capsule