Blood Plasma Flashcards
What is plasma?
the liquid component of blood
- comprising around 55% of volume
What is blood made of?
plasma 55%
buffy coat <1%
red cells 45%
What is the buffy coat?
consists of leukocytes and platelets- roughly 1%
How is blood taken?
in a tube with anticoagulant
What is extracellular fluid?
Interstitial fluid + blood plasma + transcellular fluid
What are the four fluid compartments and their relative proportions?
Intracellular 55%/ 23L
Interstitial 36%/ 15L
Blood plasma 7%/ 3L
Transcellular 2%/ 1L
(these figures are typical, but vary between individuals)
What is serum?
plasma minus the clotting factors
How do you get serum?
blood is taken in a tube WITHOUT anticoagulant, allowed to clot, and then centrifuged
What do serum separator tubes have (SST)?
A silica coating which induces clotting
A layer of gel forming a physical barrier between cells and serum
What is quicker to prepare and which one gives a cleaner sample, out of serum and plasma?
plasma is relatively quick to prepare
serum is a cleaner sample but takes longer
What are the functions of plasma?
Clotting- clotting factors and von Willebrand factor
Immune defence- antibodies and complement proteins are found in plasma
Osmotic pressure maintenance- proteins such as albumin help to maintain colloidal osmotic pressure
Metabolism- nutrients such as glucose, amino acids, and vitamins are transported in the plasma
Endocrine- many hormones are soluble in plasma and following release into the blood travel to their target organs
Excretion- waste products of cell metabolism such as urea are transported via the plasma fraction of the blood to the kidneys for removal
How much of plasma is proteins?
7%
How can you assay the plasma proteins?
by electrophoresis
What are the 2 major plasma proteins?
albumins and globulins
What is the most abundant protein in the blood?
Serum albumin
Why does albumin have the biggest peak and closest to the left side?
Largest therefore closest to cathode
What are the types of gobulins in the blood?
alpha1, alpha2, beta1, beta2, gamma globulin
What ion has the highest concentration in plasma?
Sodium
What ion has the highest concentration in blood cells?
K+
Where is serum albumin produced?
by the liver
How much of plasma proteins are serum albumin?
around 55%
What are the functions of serum albumin?
Transport of lipids, hormones, and ions
Maintaining the osmotic pressure of plasma
What do serum albumin transport?
Fatty acids released by lipolysis from the breakdown of triglycerides in adipose tissue are transported by albumin for use by tissues for beta-oxidation