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Reinflation of the alveoli following exhalation is made easier by the surfactant, which reduces surface tension in the thin fluid lining of the alveoli. The fluid coating is produced by the body in order to facilitate the transfer of gases between blood and alveolar air, and the type II cells are typically found at the blood–air barrier. [19 ...
Think of the oxygen's journey through the body like a river. The respiratory system will serve as the first part of the river. Then imagine a waterfall from that point leading to the second part of the river. The waterfall represents the alveolar and capillary walls, and the second part of the river represents the arterial system.
Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV), also known as the Euler–Liljestrand mechanism, is a physiological phenomenon in which small pulmonary arteries constrict in the presence of alveolar hypoxia (low oxygen levels).
An increase in Pi causes extraalveolar blood vessels to reduce in caliber, in turn causing blood flow to decrease (extraalveolar blood vessels are those blood vessels outside alveoli). Intraalveolar blood vessels (pulmonary capillaries) are thin walled vessels adjacent to alveoli which are subject to the pressure changes described by zones 1-3.
The body's circulatory system transports these gases to and from the cells, where cellular respiration takes place. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] The breathing of all vertebrates with lungs consists of repetitive cycles of inhalation and exhalation through a highly branched system of tubes or airways which lead from the nose to the alveoli. [ 4 ]
In effect, the single arterial pCO 2 value averages out the different pCO 2 values in the different alveoli, and so makes the Bohr equation useable. The quantity of CO 2 exhaled from the healthy alveoli is diluted by the air in the conducting airways (anatomic dead space) and by gas from alveoli that are over-ventilated in relation to their ...
Ventilation–perfusion coupling is the relationship between ventilation and perfusion processes, which take place in the respiratory system and the cardiovascular system. [1] Ventilation is the movement of gas during breathing, and perfusion is the process of pulmonary blood circulation , which delivers oxygen to body tissues. [ 2 ]
Macrophages in the alveoli are part of the immune system which engulf and digest any inhaled harmful agents. Hair in the nostrils plays a protective role, trapping particulate matter such as dust. [14] These hairs, called vibrissae, are thicker than body hair and effectively block larger particles from entering the respiratory tract.