bicarbonate ions and chloride shift

Question 1

explain the role of bicarbonate ions (HCO3-) in gas exchange

Answer 1

• produced alongside carbonic acid
• 70% of carbon dioxide is carried in this form
• in the lungs, bicarbonate ions are converted back into carbon dioxide which we breathe out

Question 2

describe the chloride shift

Answer 2

• the intake of chloride ions across a red blood cell membrane
• this repolarises the cell after bicarbonate ions have diffused out