Lab Six Flashcards
What can increase the surface area of gaseous exchange?
Lungs and gills; lungs provide a surface area of 50m^2 to 100m^2, while the rest of the body has less than 2m^2.
What are alveoli?
In the human respiratory system, a series of tubes that branch and terminate as clusters of small membranous air sacs.
What do Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide rely on to cross the alveolar membrane?
Simple diffusion; factors that affect it include: the amount of respiratory surface area, diffusion distance, and concentration gradient.
What is a high concentration gradient of the alveoli ensured by?
- Movement of blood with low oxygen and high carbon dioxide levels to the lungs
- Pulmonary ventilation, which maintains high oxygen levels and low carbon dioxide level in the alveolar air
What is Tidal Volume?
The amount of air that moves into or out of the lungs in one breathing cycle.
What is the Inspiratory Reserve Volume?
Additional air abled to be inhaled after normal inspiration.
What is Expiratory Reserve Volume?
Additional air abled to be exhaled after normal expiration.
What is Residual Volume?
The air remaining in the lungs after Expiratory Reserve Volume is fully expelled. It has a lower oxygen and higher carbon dioxide content than atmospheric air.
Why and how does the amount of air in the respiratory system change?
The amount of air moving to and from the respiratory surface of the lungs is adjusted to meet the metabolic demands of the individual, done by altering the Tidal Volume and increasing the frequency of breathing.
What is the Vital Capacity?
The maximal volume of air that can be exchanged during a single breathing cycle, represents the maximum Tidal Volume for an individual.
Where are adjustments to the Tidal Volume and breathing rate done?
In the Respiratory Center in the medulla oblongata. Peripheral chemoreceptors detect blood pH, oxygen, and carbon dioxide levels, and stretch receptors in the lungs provide important sensory information that modulates the activity of respiratory center neurons.
What can the respiratory center override?
The component of human breathing under conscious control to ensure that blood gas and pH levels are regulated appropriately.
What is a Spirometer?
A volume recorder that measures the quantity of air exchanged during lung ventilation.
How to calculate breathing rate:
breaths/minute = [60s/min]/[mean breath period (s/breath)].
In the volume capacity equation, what do the variables stand for? (H and A)
H = height in centimeters A = age in years
