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The blood–air barrier or air–blood barrier, (alveolar–capillary barrier or membrane) exists in the gas exchanging region of the lungs. It exists to prevent air bubbles from forming in the blood, and from blood entering the alveoli. It is formed by the type I pneumocytes of the alveolar wall, the endothelial cells of the capillaries and ...
There are three major types of alveolar cell. Two types are pneumocytes or pneumonocytes known as type I and type II cells found in the alveolar wall, and a large phagocytic cell known as an alveolar macrophage that moves about in the lumens of the alveoli, and in the connective tissue between them. Type I cells, also called type I pneumocytes ...
The alveoli are tiny air sacs in the lungs where gas exchange takes place. The mean number of alveoli in a human lung is 480 million. [11] When the diaphragm contracts, a negative pressure is generated in the thorax and air rushes in to fill the cavity. When that happens, these sacs fill with air, making the lung expand.
The alveolar air pressure is therefore always close to atmospheric air pressure (about 100 kPa at sea level) at rest, with the pressure gradients because of lungs contraction and expansion cause air to move in and out of the lungs during breathing rarely exceeding 2–3 kPa. [18] [19] During exhalation, the diaphragm and intercostal muscles relax.
The edema contributes to the deposition of a hyaline membrane (composed of dead cells, surfactant, and proteins) along the alveolar walls. Hyaline membranes are characteristic of DAD. The edema interferes with the naturally occurring surfactant, which is critical for reducing surface tension and allowing alveoli to remain open and allow air in ...
Another important cell type is the pulmonary neuroendocrine cell. These are innervated cells that only make up around 0.5% of the respiratory epithelial cells. [7] The ciliated cells are columnar epithelial cells with specialized ciliary modifications. The ciliated cells make up between 50 and 80 per cent of the epithelium. [8]
Micrograph showing hemosiderin-laden alveolar macrophages, as seen in a pulmonary hemorrhage. H&E stain.. An alveolar macrophage, pulmonary macrophage, (or dust cell) is a type of macrophage, a professional phagocyte, found in the airways and at the level of the alveoli in the lungs, but separated from their walls.
The increased lung pressure pushes the air out of the lungs. [2] The primary function of ventilation is the replacement of the stale gases in the lungs with oxygen-rich air through the removal of carbon dioxide for oxygenation of the blood. [5] The oxygen is then supplied to the entire body through the circulatory system.