o2 gas transport Flashcards
when a gas diffuses into the blood, what is the first thing that happens?
it first dissolves in the plasma
why are gas transport mechanisms needed?
bc o2 and co2 are less soluble in plasma than in air
do these other mechanisms contribute to the partial pressure of the gas in the blood?
no
most o2 that dissolves in plasma is rapidly taken up by what? what is this movement driven by?
red blood cells; partial pressure gradient bw the plasma and ISF.
some o2 remains in the ISF but the other 98% binds to what?
hemoglobin (Hb)
what does hemoglobin do?
increases the oxygen content of the blood by 50-fold
what is oxygen content?
the total o2 present per unit volume
each hemoglobin consists of what? what are they called and how many are there?
4 protein subunits; 2 alpha-globin; 2 beta-globin
each subunit is bound to what?
heme
contains an iron atom that can reversibly bind to one oxygen molecule? this means that each hemoglobin can do what?
heme; bind up to 4 molecules of oxygen
binding of o2 to hemoglobin displays what? what does that mean?
cooperativity; as binding sites are occupied by O2, the affinity of the remaining sites will increase
a site bound to o2 is said to be _________, and is referred to as _____________.
oxygenated; oxyhemoglobin
a site not bound to o2 is said to be _________, and is referred to as _____________.
deoxygenated; deoxyhemoglobin
the percentage of o2 binding sites that are oxyhemoglobin depends on what?
the partial pressure of O2 in the blood
what is used to visualize the relationship bw Po2 and the oxyhemoglobin percentage?
oxygen-dissociation curve
the proportion of binding sites occupied by o2
saturation
the percentage of oxygenated binding sites at any given partial pressure
percent saturation
what is the percent saturation in the pulmonary veins and systemic arteries? (Po2 = 100mmHg here)
close to 100%
what is the percent saturation in the pulmonary arteries and systemic veins? (Po2 = 40mmHg here)
75%
the affinity of Hb of O2 _____________ as blood moves thru the pulmonary capillaries, and __________ as blood moves thru the systemic capillaries
increases, decreases
increased affinity promotes what? what does that mean?
loading; binding of O2 to Hb
decreased affinity promotes what? what does that mean?
unloading; unbinding of O2 from Hb
what does a leftward shift in the dissociation curve indicate?
increased affinity that promotes loading
what does a rightward shift in the dissociation curve indicate?
decreased affinity that promotes unloading