Which of these body systems is responsible for increasing the number of cells?

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Which of the body systems is resonsible for increasing the number of cells?

  • Skeletal

    Votes: 54 58.1%

  • Reproductive

    Votes: 35 37.6%

  • Digestive

    Votes: 14 15.1%

  • Muscular

    Votes: 2 2.2%

  • Cardiovascular

    Votes: 9 9.7%
  • Total voters
    93
S

Shinobiz11

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So this was a question on my A& P exam from last week. I scored well so it doesn't matter, but I just wanted to see other people's opinions on it. Definitely on of the the most vague questions I've ever seen on a test; which I got wrong.
I thought the professor was alluding that cells need energy to "grow" and therefore get the energy from the digestive system. I argued it being skeletal though, but she didn't say blood cells. But as we can see overall there is no real clear cut choice, right? The answer was the reproductive system ...sooooo yeah. Thoughts?
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My opinion? That was a stupid question. I call it that because of how vague it is. The body has multiple types of "cells," and the rate of mitosis or meiosis wholly depends on what type of cell it is, its function, and whatever histological group it belongs to.

Bad question, horrible question.
 
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Except for muscle and cardiovascular, the other cells all replicate, meaning they are all responsible for increasing number of cells. This question is just plain awful.
 
Since it's AP, I'm guessing they wanted you to realize that the reproductive system in males is responsible for making like a bajillion cells a day (sperm).

Although it just seems like a bad question in general.
 
Yah, it's a horrible question. It's trying to imply that the only way to make new cells is through reproduction.
 
I went GI system. Sure the male testes makes a lot of cells, but the entire GI tract turns over on a weekly basis. Talk about surface area! The female system doesn't turn over near as many as the male system does.

I'd also like to tell your professor to teach relevant material instead of trivial bull**** that no one cares about.
 
Lanolin said:
I went GI system. Sure the male testes makes a lot of cells, but the entire GI tract turns over on a weekly basis. Talk about surface area! The female system doesn't turn over near as many as the male system does.

I'd also like to tell your professor to teach relevant material instead of trivial bull**** that no one cares about.
Click to expand...

Or put the more obvious answer, e.g, nervous system that produces or stimulates production of hormones which actually stimulate the growth and renewal of a lot of cells.
 
Yea I put skeletal because I was thinking of rbc and wbc. But yea I would say the endocrine system. Doesn't the release of growth hormone increase cell proliferation and metabolic activity? And it has a very diffuse effect, hitting all types of cells and inducing growth, maturation, and proliferation.
 
I am thinking about this in a slightly different way than the rest of y'all. I would argue for the digestive system, because it provides the raw materials from which new cells are made. No food, no growth.
 
Bad question, but I think the point is, in general terms, other systems of the body replace dying cells, they do not tend to increase the overall number of cells (obviously with differing degrees of variance). Even the reproductive system, of course, isn't just constantly making new cells, but the actual process of reproduction is the only time in general that large increases in new cells occurs without corresponding death of old cells (after growth of childhood and adolescence, that is).

That is the only thing I can see that makes sense, but it is a bad question.
 
darkjedi said:
Except for muscle and cardiovascular, the other cells all replicate, meaning they are all responsible for increasing number of cells. This question is just plain awful.
Click to expand...

I think muscle cells (skeletal and smooth) "replicate". Progenitor cells called myoblasts fuse together to form myocytes (this is only true for skeletal muscle). during embryonic development. Myoblasts that don't fuse become satellite cells (muscle stem cells). When muscle repair/growth is required, the satellite cell divide and some of them go on to fuse with the present myocytes. The ones that don't fuse remain as satellite cells for future muscle repair/growth.

Cardiac muscle is a little different, I think.

I'm pretty sure that's how it works. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong.
 
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Lanolin said:
I went GI system. Sure the male testes makes a lot of cells, but the entire GI tract turns over on a weekly basis. Talk about surface area! The female system doesn't turn over near as many as the male system does.

I'd also like to tell your professor to teach relevant material instead of trivial bull**** that no one cares about.
Click to expand...

Well, if we follow that logic, then the true answer, the Integumentary system, was left out...therefore it would be none of the above, lol.
 
The only plausible answer to this question would be the endocrine system. The endocrine system is responsible for proliferation and cell reproduction (growth hormone?). It's a stupid question...
 
Gotta love scientist. We all agree that it was a horribly presented question, yet we still try to answer it, lol.
 
Chemdude said:
I think muscle cells (skeletal and smooth) "replicate". Progenitor cells called myoblasts fuse together to form myocytes (this is only true for skeletal muscle). during embryonic development. Myoblasts that don't fuse become satellite cells (muscle stem cells). When muscle repair/growth is required, the satellite cell divide and some of them go on to fuse with the present myocytes. The ones that don't fuse remain as satellite cells for future muscle repair/growth.

Cardiac muscle is a little different, I think.

I'm pretty sure that's how it works. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

Terrible question.

I agree with that but if this was STEP1 (I know, they wouldn't write such a terrible question), I still wouldn't pick skeletal muscle using that logic. You're right that muscle does have some mild capability to regenerate using satellite cells but I think the fact that skeletal muscle undergoes hypertrophy and NOT hyperplasia would make me not pick that answer.

Someone said that this type of question is irrelevant. I disagree. I haven't taken STEP1 yet but I know for a fact that question makers love to ask about where stem cells are located in different organ systems (skin, GI, etc.).
 
dlouis said:
Terrible question.

I agree with that but if this was STEP1 (I know, they wouldn't write such a terrible question), I still wouldn't pick skeletal muscle using that logic. You're right that muscle does have some mild capability to regenerate using satellite cells but I think the fact that skeletal muscle undergoes hypertrophy and NOT hyperplasia would make me not pick that answer.

Someone said that this type of question is irrelevant. I disagree. I haven't taken STEP1 yet but I know for a fact that question makers love to ask about where stem cells are located in different organ systems (skin, GI, etc.).
Click to expand...

I agree with you. I was only responding to someone who said that muscle cells don't "replicate".
 
theseeker4 said:
Bad question, but I think the point is, in general terms, other systems of the body replace dying cells, they do not tend to increase the overall number of cells (obviously with differing degrees of variance). Even the reproductive system, of course, isn't just constantly making new cells, but the actual process of reproduction is the only time in general that large increases in new cells occurs without corresponding death of old cells (after growth of childhood and adolescence, that is).

That is the only thing I can see that makes sense, but it is a bad question.
Click to expand...

This.

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Chemdude said:
I think muscle cells (skeletal and smooth) "replicate". Progenitor cells called myoblasts fuse together to form myocytes (this is only true for skeletal muscle). during embryonic development. Myoblasts that don't fuse become satellite cells (muscle stem cells). When muscle repair/growth is required, the satellite cell divide and some of them go on to fuse with the present myocytes. The ones that don't fuse remain as satellite cells for future muscle repair/growth.

Cardiac muscle is a little different, I think.

I'm pretty sure that's how it works. Maybe someone can correct me if I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

I read the question as just muscle cells. Since myosatellite cells are progenitor cells and not considered as muscle, I discounted the fact that they can differentiate into muscle cells. Muscle cells themselves are post-mitotic and as the other guy said do not undergo hyperplasia.

Cardiovascular muscle cells do not ever replicate, hence why myocardial infarcts are so devastating.
 
darkjedi said:
I read the question as just muscle cells. Since myosatellite cells are progenitor cells and not considered as muscle, I discounted the fact that they can differentiate into muscle cells. Muscle cells themselves are post-mitotic and as the other guy said do not undergo hyperplasia.

Cardiovascular muscle cells do not ever replicate, hence why myocardial infarcts are so devastating.
Click to expand...

Except in the case of cancers, correct?
 
OHHHHH I get it now.

Which of these body systems is responsible for increasing the number of cells?

So which system's function results in an increase in the total number of cells. Reproductive system results in a whole new person forming, aka a baby. Hence it wins!

-TrollTeacher
 
darkjedi said:
True, cancers can still happen in cell types that normally don't replicate.
Click to expand...

Troll cells for sure. "We aren't normally mitotic, but if we are we'll kill your ass."
 
My initial thought (besides awful question) was that without the GI tract, the other systems would not receive the necessary nutrition to replicate...but I guess I would have lost points too :scared:
 
I would have said skeletal because of the leukocytes and erythrocytes generated in bone marrow, but it's a really vague question. Hopefully, your professor throws it out.
 
the list consist of permanent cells and 1 stable(digestive) and 1 labile(reproductive). so the answer is reproductive.

anyway what is muscular? is it skeletal or cardiac or smooth?
 
Internistt said:
the list consist of permanent cells and 1 stable(digestive) and 1 labile(reproductive). so the answer is reproductive.

anyway what is muscular? is it skeletal or cardiac or smooth?
Click to expand...

Epithelial intestinal cells turn over quite a bit
 
dlouis said:
Terrible question.

I agree with that but if this was STEP1 (I know, they wouldn't write such a terrible question), I still wouldn't pick skeletal muscle using that logic. You're right that muscle does have some mild capability to regenerate using satellite cells but I think the fact that skeletal muscle undergoes hypertrophy and NOT hyperplasia would make me not pick that answer.

Someone said that this type of question is irrelevant. I disagree. I haven't taken STEP1 yet but I know for a fact that question makers love to ask about where stem cells are located in different organ systems (skin, GI, etc.).
Click to expand...

This isn't on step 1. This is trivial bull**** that no one cares about.
 
The answer is clearly "yes"





and also "no."
 
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