‫‪plasma and It’s components‬‬

‫‪Group: G4‬‬

‫‪Students names:‬‬

‫كاظم حسين حنون‬ ‫‪.1‬‬

‫رحمة كاظم حسن‬ ‫‪.2‬‬
‫حيدر خالد عباس‬ ‫‪.3‬‬
‫علي حسين خزعل‬ ‫‪.4‬‬
‫حيدر زكي عبد‬ ‫‪.5‬‬
‫زينب عبد الجليل محمد‬ ‫‪.6‬‬
‫ولي قادر كسار‬ ‫‪.7‬‬
‫مصطفى جابر ثجيل‬ ‫‪.8‬‬
‫مريم نمر طالب‬ ‫‪.9‬‬
‫محمد فرحان كريدي‬ ‫‪.10‬‬
 PLASMA

 Blood is made up of plasma and solid components. Of these, the

larger part is plasma, comprising about 55%. It appears as a straw-
colored fluid and is composed mainly of water, but also carries
enzymes and salts.

The elements of blood. blood vessel cut section.

 What Does Plasma Do?

Plasma is designed to carry nutrients, hormones, and proteins to the

different parts of the body. It also carries away the waste products of cell
metabolism from various tissues to the organs responsible for detoxifying
and/or excreting them. In addition, plasma is the vehicle for the transport of
the blood cells through the blood vessels.

 Plasma Components:
Plasma contains about 90 percent water, with 10 percent being made up of
ions, proteins, dissolved gases, nutrient molecules, and wastes.

The proteins in plasma include the antibody proteins, coagulation factors,

and the proteins albumin and fibrinogen which maintain serum osmotic
pressure.

Each of these can be separated using different techniques so that they

form various blood products, which are used to treat different conditions.
For instance, clotting factors are used to treat coagulation disorders like
hemophilia or disseminated intravascular coagulation.

 Specific Components and Their Function:

The pH and osmotic pressure of blood are maintained by the plasma ions,
proteins, and other molecules.

1. Plasma Proteins

Plasma proteins are the most abundant substances in the plasma and are
present in three major types, namely, albumin, globulins, and fibrinogen.
They play specialized roles as follows:

2. Albumin

Albumin helps maintain the colloid osmotic pressure of the blood. It is the
smallest in size among the plasma proteins but makes up the largest
percentage. The colloid osmotic pressure of the blood is important in
maintaining a balance between the water inside the blood and that in the
tissue fluid, around the cells. When the plasma proteins are deficient, the
water in the plasma seeps out into the space around the blood vessels and
may result in interstitial edema, a feature of liver disorders, kidney disease
and malnutrition, for instance. Albumin also helps transport many
substances such as drugs, hormones, and fatty acids.

3. Globulins

Globulins are of three types, alpha, beta, and gamma, from smallest to
largest. Gamma-globulins are called antibodies. The alpha globulins
include the high-density lipoproteins (HDL) which are important in carrying
fats to the cells for building various substances as well as for energy
metabolism. HDL is best known for its role in preventing plaque formation
by keeping cholesterol in transport within the blood. Low-density
lipoproteins (LDL) are beta globulins which transport fat to the cells for
steroid and cell membrane synthesis. It also promotes cholesterol plaque
formation which is a risk factor for arterial and heart disease.

Antibodies or gamma globulins are also called immunoglobulin. They are

produced by the B lymphocytes, a subset of the immune cells. Antibodies
are responsible for the body’s humoral immune function, recognizing
pathogens via specific receptors and neutralizing them by various
mechanisms.

4. Fibrinogen

Fibrinogen is an important soluble plasma clotting factor precursor, which is

converted to a threadlike protein called fibrin on contact with a sticky
surface. The fibrin threads formed in this way trap platelets to form the
primary platelet clot on which a stable blood clot is formed by the process
of coagulation.

 Clotting Factors and Inhibitors

The clotting factors in plasma cause a blood clot to form at the site of any
break in the smooth endothelial lining of the blood vessels. This not only
prevents blood loss but protects the body against invading microbes.

Coagulation inhibitor proteins prevent the clotting of blood at unwanted

locations or times.

 Complement Proteins

The complement system is another important set of plasma proteins which

are involved in immune and inflammatory reactions in response to many
different infectious particles.

 Other Functions
  Plasma proteins keep the blood pH slightly alkaline by binding excess
hydrogen ions in the blood.

 Plasma proteins can also supply amino acids if required by being

broken down by macrophages.

 Plasma proteins are also often carriers for small molecules, each
binding after absorption from the gut with its own specific protein
carrier for transport to the tissue or organ that uses it.

 Other Plasma Components

1) Proteins

 Cytokines are cellular signaling molecules produced by cells in order

to communicate with each other and to regulate important cellular
processes.

 Hormones are molecules released by one organ or cell type to act

upon another at a distant location, being carried through the
bloodstream, to produce long-distance effects.

2) Electrolytes

Sodium is the most abundant ion carried in plasma and contributes most of
the plasma osmolarity.

3) Amino acids

Tissues or plasma proteins may be broken down and the amino acids
recycled for use in the synthesis of other biological structures. This may
involve macrophages in the gut, the lymphatic system, and the lungs.

4) Nitrogenous compounds

Nitrogenous waste compounds such as urea are produced by the

breakdown of various substances in the body. These are carried in the
plasma to the kidneys to be excreted.
 5) Nutrients

Nutrients absorbed from the gut or from other organs of origin are carried in
the plasma, such as glucose, fats, amino acids, minerals, and vitamins.

6) Dissolved gases

Plasma also contains dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, in small

amounts, as well as a significant amount of nitrogen.