Alveoli and nephron act as the structural and functional units of lungs and kidneys respectively. Alveoli occur in the respiratory system while the nephrons occur in the excretory system. The cell wall of alveoli and nephrons is thick and surrounded by blood capillaries. Let us have a detailed look at the differences between alveoli and nephrons with respect to its structure and function.
Comparison Chart
|
Alveoli |
Nephrons |
| Alveoli are the tiny air sacs present in lungs that allows rapid exchange of gases. |
Nephrons comprise glomerulus and tubules through which glomerular filtrate passes. |
|
Present in lungs |
Present in kidneys |
| There are located in the respiratory system |
These are located in the excretory system |
|
There are around 480 million alveoli found in each lung |
Here re around 1.5 million nephrons found in kidneys |
| These are sac-like structures |
These are tubular structures |
|
Pulmonary arterioles supply blood |
Afferent arterioles supply blood |
| Blood is supplied to pulmonary veins |
Blood is supplied to renal veins |
|
Facilitates gaseous exchange in lungs |
Facilitates blood filtration to produce urine |
| Made up of simple squamous epithelium | Made up of simple cuboidal epithelium with microvilli |
Alveoli are tiny air sacs present in the lungs with the appearance of a bunch of grapes. These are also known as pulmonary alveoli. They mainly facilitate the exchange of gases. Whereas, nephrons are divided into renal corpuscle and renal tubule. These are mainly concerned with blood filtration.
To know more about the structural and functional differences between alveoli and nephrons, keep visiting BYJU’S website or download BYJU’S app.
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