“Local control”: another core concept of physiology

Abstract

The maintenance of a more or less constant internal environment by homeostatic (negative feedback) mechanisms is well understood, and “homeostasis” is regarded as an important core concept for students to understand. However, there are critically important control mechanisms that operate at the local level and are more or less independent of homeostasis. Here we define a core concept of “local control,” present examples of it in many different organ systems, and propose a conceptual framework for it. Local control, like all of the other core concepts, can provide students with a learning tool that can facilitate understanding physiology. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Local control of many physiological phenomena occurs to meet the needs of certain systems and to enable these systems to meet the episodic challenges that occur. The mechanisms by which local control is exerted include locally released chemical messengers, physical stimuli acting on the structures, and local neural networks. Examples of important local controls are present throughout the body.