Microcirculation Flashcards
Describe capillary walls and their permeability.
Capillary walls are one cell thick of endothelium about 42mm thick .
Small and lipophilic substances can pass thru cells . The walls have small gaps called clefts that let other small substances pass through . Any other substance that must diffuse into / out of capillary use vesicles called Caveolae .Different capillaries have different permeabilities based on needs / brain , liver, GI , kidney
Microcirculation
Over 10 billion capillaries with surface area of ~500-700 m2
Transport of nutrients to the tissues
Removal of cell waste
Very thin walls
Controlled by arterioles in each tissue along with precapillary sphincters
Local control
Capillary Walls
One cell thick endothelium
Basement membrane
~0.5 μm total thickness
Contains pores
Intercellular cleft
Caveolae
Brain
Tight junctions – continuous capillaries
Liver
Large clefts - sinusoids
GI tract
Clefts smaller than liver, but still large
Kidney glomeruli
Small oval windows – fenestrated capillaries
Vasomotion
Intermittent flow of blood through capillaries due to regulation via precapillary sphincters and metarterioles or small arterioles
Due to O2 levels of tissue
Bulk Flow in Systemic Capillaries
Transcapillary movement is by bulk flow diffusion
Diffusion is the main method of exchange between plasma and interstitial fluid (fluid in interstitium, found between cells; gel consistency)
Lipid soluble substances pass through cell membrane
Lipid insoluble pass through intercellular clefts
Enhanced by concentration differences
Hydrostatic Pressure
pressure fluid puts on walls
Colloid Osmotic Pressure
pressure solutes put on water, drawing water toward solutes
Capillary Hydrostatic Pressure (Pc)
Tends to push fluid out of capillaries
Interstitial Fluid Hydrostatic Pressure (Pif)
Would tend to pull fluid into capillaries, BUT pulls fluid out of capillaries due to lymphatic drainage
Capillary/Plasma Osmotic Pressure (πp)
Tends to pull water into capillaries by osmosis
Due to presence of proteins (albumin/globulins) in plasma
Interstitial Fluid Osmotic Pressure (πif)
Tends to pull water out of capillaries by osmosis
Due to proteins in interstitium (very low)
Net Filtration Pressure
NFP = outward pressures – inward pressures
NFP = (Pc + πif) – (πp + Pif)
Bulk Flow in Systemic Capillaries
90% of filtered fluid is reabsorbed at venous end
10% is collected by lymphatic system
Lymphatic System
Returns fluid and proteins to the blood
(2-3L/day)
Fluid in lymphatic vessels is called lymph
Prevents edema
Absorbs lipids from GI tract
Role in immune system
lymph flow
aided by smooth muscle and the skeletal muscle pump.
Describe the lymphatic vessel system & its role in preventing fluid accumulation in the interstitial space.
90% of filtered fluid is reabsorbed at the venous end of the capillary .
The remaining 10% is collected by lymphatic capillaries as lymph .
Lymph collecting into the thoracic cavity where , after it has been filtered by lymph nodes , empties back into the veins to contribute to blood volume . lymph flow is aided by smooth muscle and the skeletal muscle pump.
Local Control of Blood Flow
Each tissue controls its own blood flow
Based on tissue needs
Delivery of O2
Delivery of other nutrients: glucose, amino acids, fatty acids
Removal of CO2 and H+
Maintenance of ion concentrations
Transport of hormones and other substances
Flow proportional to metabolic needs