Haemoglobin and gas transport 1,2/ Flashcards
how much O2 is dissolved per litre of plasma?
3mL
why use haemoglobin? what is the blood’s O2 carrying capacity because of haemoglobin?
increases blood’s carrying capacity to 200mL/L
what proportion of CO2 is dissolved per litre of plasma?
the bulk of it
what phase do gases travel in the blood in?
they are dissolved in liquid, were they gaseous they would crete fatal air embolism
what is each haemoglobin chain attached to?
iron heme group
what does O2 bind to in the haemoglobin?
1 heme binds to oxygen, so 4 oxygens can be fixed by haemoglobin
what is cooperative binding, how is it relevant to haemoglobin?
cooperativity, because as O2 starts to bind, the conformation changes and makes it easier for more O2 to arrive, also when O2 leaves, conformation changes and makes it easier for th other O2 to leave (change in conformation changes affinity)
how many alpha and beta chains in HbA?
2 alpha and 2 beta
what is the lifespan of a red blood cells?
120 days
how oxygenated is deoxygenated blood?
75%
why is arterial partial pressure of O2 not the same as arterial O2 content?
because arterial partial pressure accounts for only the O2 dissolved in the blood, and not the O2 attached to haemoglobin
what is the relation between the partial pressure of a gas in solution and the partial pressure in gaseous phase (before it is driven into solution)
they are equal, i.e. the partial pressure at the alveoli is the same as the partial pressure inside the blood
what is O2’s solubility in water?
0,03mL/L/mmHg
how much plasma do we have per litre?
3mL/L plasma
what is the partial pressure driving O2 into the liquid phase in plasma (ie the partial pressure at the alveoli, also the partial pressure in solution)
3/0,03=100, 100 mmHg, known as the oxygen tension
what is the O2 demand of resting tissues?
250mL/min
what is the cardiac output?
5L/min
what is the rate of O2 delivery to tissue, counting only the O2 diluted in the plasma?
3mL/L x 5L/min = 15mL/min
what is the rate of O2 delivery to tissue, counting only the O2 carried by the hemes?
200mL/L x 5L/min = 1000mL/min
what percentage of arterial O2 is extracted by peripheral tissues at rest?
250mL/min : 1000mL/min
what is the percentage of O2 bound to haemoglobin?
1-(15/1000) = 98,5%
what percentage of Hb in RBC is in the form HbA? what does this form consist of? what makes up the rest of that percentage?
92%, 2 alpha and 2 beta chains. The remaining 8% is HbA2, HbF and glycosylated Hb
what does the HbA2 form consist of?
2 alpha and 2 delta
what does the HbF form consist of?
2 alpha and 2 gamma
which forms of Hb are glycosylated Hb?
HbA1a, HbA1b, HbA1c
what is the major determinant of the degree to which haemoglobin is saturated with oxygen?
the partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood
where does Hb get its O2 from? the alveoli or the arterial plasma?
the plasma, that way there is a permanent partial pressure gradient between the alveoli and the arterial plasma, which means the arterial plasma is constantly filled up with O2 (to maintain 100 mmHg)
how long does it take for the Hb to become saturated?
0,25s contact time
what is the total contact time between alveoli and plasma?
about 0,75s