Airway function Flashcards

1
Q
  1. How do the airways divide into smaller airways?
A

Trachea divides in two-dichrotomous branching. As they branch they get smaller and narrower. Goes from primary bronchi to secondary (lobar), then teriary (segmental). Rigth primary bronchi is wider, shorter and goes down more

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2
Q
  1. Describe the arrangement of cartilage rings in the airways.
A

Held open by cartilage rings-shaped in C. Trachea, oesophagus, bronchi. C shape allows stretching allowing food to go down. Also slightly offset from one another to allow greater tensile strength (at an angle)

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3
Q
  1. Where are submucosal glands found and what are their functions?
A

Found underneath the epithelial layer, usually nest within the smooth muscle. Made of a lot of goblet cells nested in a gland. Mucus is there to trap microbes and toxin in airway, and its constantly pushed out by cilae. Nearly 10ml mucus produced per day.

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4
Q
  1. Describe the tissue organisation of airways
A

Airway lumen, then epithelial layer of ciliated cells and goblet cells with mucus. Deeper in, you have submucosal glands within a smooth muscle cell layer. Outside of that you get cartilage

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5
Q
  1. Describe the secretion of mucus by goblet cells.
A

Mucin granules come to the apical surface and fuses with it-little pores form allowing water in. This makes mucin expand rapidely, and as pore opens more the mucus pops out-expands hundreds of time witrh water

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6
Q
  1. Describe the structure of submucosal gland.
A

Linked to epithelia by ciliated duct, then collecting duct. Cells are mixes of functional units (Acinii)-serous and mucous. Serous are peripheral to mucus acini. Produce watery mucus and its flushed through the duct into airway. Also secretes water, lysosymes

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7
Q
  1. Describe the ultrastructure of a cilium.
A

9+2 pattern – 9 outside and 2 inside. Ciliae are transmembrane with hooks at the end. The rod turns to move-need lot of energy. About 200 per cell

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8
Q
  1. What is the pattern of beating of cilia?
A

Metachronal rhythm-one field beats and the next one then catches up, then the next etc. As its slightly delayed, mucus is moved along

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9
Q
  1. State some of the regulatory and inflammatory mediators produced by airway epithelial cells.
A

NO, CO, Arachnoidic acid metabolites (prostaglandins), chemokines, cytokines, proteases. Role of epithalia, secretion of mucsin, movement of mucus, physical barrier, and those mediators

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10
Q
  1. In which cells of the airway do you find a high concentration of Nitric Oxide Synthase?
A

Epithalia has a lot of NOS and maybe NO-which might have a role in increasing speed of beating

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11
Q
  1. What inflammatory mediators can be produced by smooth muscle cells?
A

SMC role-structure, tone and secretion

Can secrete medators, cytokines and chemokines. Mostly NOS upregulation

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12
Q
  1. How does blood return to the heart from the tracheal circulation?
A

As normal through systemic veins

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13
Q
  1. How does blood return to the heart from the bronchial circulation?
A

Returns to blood to both sides of the heart through systemic AND pulmonary veins

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14
Q
  1. What is the function of the tracheo-bronchial circulation?
A

One of best perfused tissue-many capillaries. Helps in gas exchange, warming and humidifcation of air
Clears mediators and inhaled drugs, and good supply of Immune cells and protein plasma

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15
Q
  1. Explain the process of plasma exudation in the airways.
A

In post capillary venules-the endothelial cells can contract-creates gaps and openings, leading to plasma leakage. This is a normal process, and mediated by sensory nerves, histamines and other mediators. In disease like asthma, this can be excessive, producing excess histamine and sensory nerve activatoon

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16
Q
  1. What effect does platelet activating factor (PAF) have on exudation?
A

Causes a large increase of plasma exudation-happens in asma

17
Q
  1. What are the most important motor pathways in the airways?
A

Cholinergic nerves, that go straight to brain stem (afferent and efferent, though vagus). Other controles are refulatory mechanism (histamine, etc), reactive gas species, proteinases

18
Q
  1. Describe the cholinergic reflex.
A

As something large enter the airways, activates sensory pathway of cholinergic nerves, causing cholinergic effect-bronchoconstriction to stop from going in. But we don’t have sympathetic release-rely on adrenaline to relax airway. Also has a neuronal pathway, not sympathetic, which produces NO, relaxing NO

19
Q
  1. What causes bronchodilation in humans?
A

We don’t have sympathetic pathways to relax. Instead rely on adrenaline to relax muscle AND some innervation that produces NO to relax SMC

20
Q
  1. What does the cholinergic reflex cause?
A

After sensory nerve activation, vagus nerve to parsympathetic ganglion, then contracts SMC wit Ach, increase mucus secretion (also Ach) and maybe mild vasodilation (muscarinsic)

21
Q
  1. State three respiratory diseases that involve a loss of respiratory control
A

Asthma, COPD and Cystic Firbosis

22
Q
  1. What are the characteristics of asthma?
A

Clinical syndrome characterised by increased airway responsiveness to stimuli-but its REVERSIBEL (with adrenaline)-causes dyspnea, wheezing, cough. Constant inflammation causes remodelling. Can get mucus plugs in lumen with a lot of eosinophils, epithelial fragility, ticker Basment membrane, large blood vessels

23
Q
  1. Describe the histological features of asthma.
A

Mucus plug in lumen, epithelial fragility, thicker Basement membrane, large blood vessels and MASSIVE EOSINOPHIL INFITRATION

24
Q
  1. What cells are abundant in a mucus plug formed by asthma?
A

Eosinophils

25
Q
  1. How does asthma set up a central cholinergic reflex?
A

Epithelial fragility exposes sensory nerves to mediators-activates central cholinergic effect cause SMC constriction and mucus secretion. Repeated offenses causes hypertrophy and increase of goblet cells-bracho constriction and extra mucus. Also increase chemical mediators in these cells

26
Q
  1. What are the consequences of asthma to the structure of the airways?
A

Causes general brachocontriction, as the SMC clears. It would be fine in a normal person but mucus plug can then fill it very easily-then hard to breath or death