Respiratory Tract 1: Gas Transport Flashcards
What proteins are used to transport oxygen? What formula is derived from this?
Hemoglobin- 98% of oxygen transported in blood (oxyhemoglobin)
Dissolved in plasma- 2% (0.3 mL/dL)
Total blood Oxygen content= amount dissolved in plasma+ amount bound to hemoglobin
Why do we need hemoglobin to transport oxygen?
- dissolved oxygen reaching circulation each minute is less than 10% of basal needs and would require a cardiac output of 83L/min to maintain basal needs
- Dissolved oxygen is not the sufficient to meet the bodies demands
- Blood oxygen content is increased by the carrier molecule- hemoglobin
Describe hemoglobin
Tetramer( 4 units)
Each monomer contains a heme group (porphyrin ring with Fe held in the center)
2 alpha heme and 2 beta heme and a polypeptide (globin) chain
Each heme can bind 1 molecule of oxygen
What does Oxygen Carrying Capacity mean?
The maximum amount of oxygen that can be bound to hemoglobin
What is oxygen saturation?
Ratio of quantity of oxygen actually bound to the quantity of oxygen that can be potentially bound (come back for formula)
-usually 98% on room air
What is oxygen content?
Amount of oxygen actually bound to hemoglobin + dissolved oxygen
- oxygen content= (binding capacity x % saturation) + dissolved oxygen
What is the average Hb content of blood ?
15g/100ml
- 12-16 g/dL in females
- 13-18 g/dL in men
1 g of Hb can bind …
1.34 ml of O2
How to calculate oxygen carrying capacity?
15g/100ml
- 12-16 g/dL in females
- 13-18 g/dL in men
1g of Hb can bind 1.34 ml of oxygen
=1.34 x 15
= 20.1 ml O2/ 100 ml
How to calculate oxygen content?
O2 content= (binding capacity x % saturation) + dissolved oxygen
-Oxygen content
(98% x 20.1)+ 0.3
=19.7+ 0.3
= 20.1 ml O2 /100 ml
Describe oxygen saturation
A measure of the number of occupied oxygen binding sites in a Hb molecule (comeback for formula)
A patient with anemia has a normal SaO2 because the O2 content and binding capacity are proportionally reduced
What is anemia?
Anemia is strictly defined as a decrease in red blood cell mass
May result from blood loss, increased destruction of RBCs(hemolysis), or decreased production of RBCs
The Hb available can still be saturated
What is cooperative binding?
Once on O2 is bound to Hb it becomes easier for the next O2 to bind
Describe the hemoglobin-oxygen transport
Association (loading)
- blood arrives at lungs with a O2 saturation of about 75%
- Pressure gradient enhances transfer
- Plateau region of the curve
Dissociation
- Blood arrives at tissues where O2 it is needed
- Pressure gradient and environment facilitates transfer
- Steep region of the curve
- Each O2 dissociation event lowers the affinity of the remaining heme groups for bound O2
What is the consequence of P50?
P50- partial pressure of oxygen required to saturate 50% of Hb
- Measure of the affinity of Hb for oxygen
- Low P50= high affinity since less PO2 is needed to reach 50% saturation
- High P50= low affinity since you must give higher PO2 to reach 50% saturation