Plasma protein,

This is any of the proteins, including albumin, fibrinogen, prothrombin, and the gamma globulins, that constitute about 6% to 7% of the blood plasma in the body. These substances help maintain water balance that affects osmotic pressure, increase blood viscosity, and help maintain blood pressure. All the plasma proteins except the gamma globulins are synthesized in the liver

Plasma Proteins
y y Plasma is almost identical to interstitual fluid except that it contains about 7% protein while interstitual fluid contains about 2% protein The plasma proteins are divided into three major classes: % in serum 53% % in blood 61 g/l blood 60-84 35-50 capillary colloid osmotic pressure -> reduces fluid leakage out of capillaries Transport Transport, substrates for formation of other substances Transport, substrates for formation of other substances immunity [antibodies] Primary function/s

Protein type Total Albumin

Globulin

alpha beta

14% 12%

34

23-35

gamma 20% Fibrinogen y y NA 4.1

1.9-3.6 Blood clotting

All the plasma proteins contribute to developing a colloid osmotic pressure Fibrinogen is a soluble protein that polymerises to form the insoluble protein fibrin during blood clotting All (except gamma globulins) are synthesized in the liver

Functions of plasma proteins

Maintain Osmotic Pressure
As blood passes through the arteries to the tissues, it moves into smaller and smaller vessels. The smallest of these vessels, called capillaries, are so narrow that blood cells pass through in single file. Capillaries are tiny and numerous enough that each cell in the body has one or more nearby, and the liquid component of blood leaks out of each capillary to bathe nearby cells in nutrient-rich fluid. Of course, if liquid continually leaked out of the blood vessels and never re-entered, blood pressure would drop and death would quickly ensue. The job of certain plasma proteins, called albumins, is to draw fluid back into the capillaries for return to the heart. The proteins produce what is called osmotic pressure, according to the textbook "Human Physiology." Osmotic pressure is simply a physical force that acts on liquid, pulling it from around the cells, where there are not plasma proteins exerting a force on it, to the insides of the capillaries where the plasma proteins are located

Transport Molecules
Some plasma proteins are responsible for transporting certain molecules in the bloodstream. Since blood is water-based, only compounds that can dissolve in water are able to dissolve in, and be transported by, blood. Biochemists Mary Campbell, Ph.D., and Shawn Farrell, Ph.D., explain that while some molecules have their own transporters--oxygen, for instance, can't dissolve in blood but is transported by red blood cells--other molecules must catch rides on passing plasma proteins. The waste molecule carbon dioxide is one such example. It is produced by every metabolically active cell and must reach the lungs for exhalation via the bloodstream, but it's not water-soluble and therefore often uses plasma proteins as a means of transportation.

Immunity
The immune system is complex and is made up of many different components. Plasma proteins called immunoglobulins--also called antibodies in common parlance--are produced by certain white blood cells, according to Dr. Thomas Pollard and William Earnshaw, Ph.D., in their textbook "Cell Biology." The major purpose of immunoglobulins is to mark invading pathogens for destruction so that cells of the immune system can kill and digest them.

Blood Clotting
Fibrinogen is a plasma protein that serves an important role in clotting. If tissue is damaged and bleeding ensues, damaged cells send chemical signals and initiate a cascade of events that culminate in the production of a blood clot or, if the damage is to the skin, a scab. During this reaction cascade, fibrinogen is converted to long, fibrous strands of protein, which are then called fibrin, and these strands form a delicate net

that captures cells from the bloodstream to form a patch. As the fibrin and cell patch begins to solidify, it produces a clot or scab, which stops the bleeding.