mass transport Flashcards
what is the role of haemoglobin
pick up and transport oxygen around an organism
how does haemoglobin function
picks up oxygen in areas where it is most plentiful and releases it into areas where it is needed
what is the structure of haemoglobin
globular protein
-4 polypeptide chains
-two alpha and two beta
-each chain contains a haem group and a Fe ^2+ ion group the iron is responsible for the colour
how is the binding of oxygen a reversible process
the binding of oxygen is known as association or oxygen loading
the release of oxygen is known as dissociation or oxygen unloading
how does haemoglobin bind to oxygen
Each molecule has binding sites
there is a different conc of oxygen in the blood which enables it to change its affinity
in areas where there is a high oxygen partial pressure there is a high affinity for oxygen and oxygen is associated for example in the lungs- this means that lots will be picked up to transport
in areas where there is low oxygen and high carbon dioxide there is a low affinity for oxygen so oxygen is dissociated to the blood for example in active respiring tissue
why does the DNA effect the affinities of haemoglobin
-different sequences in the bases on the DNA code for different amino acids so different primary structure
-this then leads to a different folding of the chain thus a different tertiary structure
-different genes have different affinities for example alpha has a higher affinity than beta which means that in fetal blood the maternal haemoglobin is lower
what happens when haemoglobin binds to oxygen
oxyhaemoglobin is formed
what is the graph that shows % Hb sat and ppO2 called
oxygen dissociation curve
what is the shape of the graph
an s-shape
what is an explanation for the shape of the graph - oxygen dissociation curve
at a low ppO2 - the one molecule enables the quaternary structure to change slightly- so oxygen will bind to the haemoglobin
when the 2nd and 3rd molecule binds - the binding sites become more accessible, as the shape begins to get looser and the graph increases steeper as it is more easy to gain O2
at the 4th molecule - graph is more constant - as the chance of the oxygen binding is reduced via probability
what happens in the body due to oxygen dissociation curve
active tissue - low sat and ppO2- tertiary structure is very tight so oxygen binding sites are small, this means that at a low saturation of haemoglobin there is a low affinity for oxygen - this causes the oxygen to be unloaded from Hb eg 25% sat so 75% oxygen released
in the lungs - high sat and high ppO2- high affinity for oxygen so oxygen loaded on Hb eg 98% sat so 2% released
what is the process in which the1 molecule helps the 2nd + 3rd molecule
positive cooperativity - gradient increases
what is the Bohr effect
in a high conc of carbon dioxide the oxygen dissociation curve is shifted to the right
why does the bohr effect happen
in high activity situations
high level of carbon dioxide, the CO2 and H2O produced in respiration react to form carbonic acid
carbonic acid lowers the pH which releases more H+ ions
this reduces the O2 affinity of Hb
which promotes the unloading of oxygen into the active tissues enabling them to gain more oxygen
why is the bohr process important
-haemglobin mops up hydrogen ions so blood doesn’t become acidic - buffer
-CO2 leads to the release of 02 into actively respiring tissues
how is fetal haemoglobin different from adult
it has a higher affinity at any given partial pressure
this is bc it needs to gain O2 from the mothers blood which is lower
which way does the graph shift in the case a fetal haemoglobin
left
due to fact that it will pick up more oxygen at lower pp02
maternal haemoglobin dissociates and fetal associates
in what other condition does the curve shift left
in anaerobic conditions
as the demand for oxygen increases so organisms have a high affinity at lower pressure to gain more oxygen
what other conditions affect the dissociation curve
-size and SA:V ratio - small have large SA:V so less O2 needed so shift right
-conditions - availability of oxygen
-activity levels - more respiration = more demand for o2 at higher sat as more CO2
which molecule stays binded to haemoglobin
carbon monoxide
how does carbon monoxide bind
blocks bindings sites and forms carboxyhaemoglobin which prevent oxygen form being released and binded which results in oxygen depletion
this is because the binding of CO is irreversible
so less oxygen gets to brain
how can small organism exchange materials with their environment
they have a high SA:V ratio
what do large animals have in order to exchange
have specialist transport systems as they have a small SA:V
what does the complexity of the transport system depend on
-how large the organism is and its SA:V - lower SA:V more complx need
-how active the organism is - more active greater need for exchange
what transport materials are needed for exchange
-transport medium- dissolved materials can be carried from one area to another
-closed system of vessels to contain transport medium
-mass flow system to care for pressure