PhysiologyLesson 5 of 7 in the course The Respiratory System

Blood Transport of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

This lesson explains how oxygen travels from the lungs to body tissues, focusing on the role of red blood cells and hemoglobin. Understanding this transport system shows how the blood can carry enough oxygen even though oxygen dissolves poorly in liquid.

Only about 1.5% of oxygen in the blood is dissolved in plasma. Most oxygen is carried inside erythrocytes, or red blood cells, by hemoglobin, a protein specialized for gas transport.

All flashcards

What is oxyhemoglobin?
Hemoglobin with oxygen bound to its heme groups; it is represented as HbO2HbO_2.
What is cooperative binding in hemoglobin?
Binding or release of one oxygen molecule changes how readily other oxygen molecules bind or dissociate.
What is the Bohr effect?
Lower pH reduces hemoglobin's oxygen affinity and promotes oxygen release.
What is carbaminohemoglobin?
Hemoglobin with carbon dioxide bound to amino acid groups on its globin portion.
What is the Haldane effect?
Oxygenation reduces hemoglobin's tendency to bind carbon dioxide.

Quiz questions

  1. About what proportion of carbon dioxide transported in blood is carried as bicarbonate ions?Answer: About 70%.
  2. What reaction does carbonic anhydrase speed inside erythrocytes?Answer: The reaction of carbon dioxide and water to form carbonic acid.
  3. During the chloride shift in tissues, what happens across the erythrocyte membrane?Answer: Bicarbonate leaves the erythrocyte as chloride enters it.
  4. Where does carbon dioxide bind when it forms carbaminohemoglobin?Answer: To amino acid groups on hemoglobin's globin portion.
  5. Why can fetal hemoglobin bind oxygen effectively at the placenta?Answer: It has greater oxygen affinity than adult hemoglobin.

Based on Anatomy and Physiology 2e by J. Gordon Betts, Kelly A. Young, James A. Wise, Eddie Johnson, Brandon Poe, Dean H. Kruse, Oksana Korol, Jody E. Johnson, Mark Womble, Peter DeSaix (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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