Lâm Vân Nghi - BTBCIU21079

BIOCHEMISTRY OF RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

I. Introduction
The respiratory system is a system of organs that control human
breathing (the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the whole body
with the outside environment).
The respiratory system includes 2 main missions:
• Carry oxygen to cells and reject carbon dioxide from the body -
internal respiration.
• Helps the body exchange air with the outside environment - external
respiration

*Function*
+ The respiratory system is responsible for filtering air from the outside
environment into the body - providing oxygen to the body and removing
CO2.
• Oxygen is carried into the human body by the respiratory system
from the external environment - inhalation or inspiration.
• Carbon dioxide is eliminated by the respiratory system from the
body to external environment - exhalation or expiration.
+ Creates sounds.
 + Contains organs that sense odors.
+ Adjusts blood pH.
+Remove excess water and residual heat.
II. Biochemical compound of respiratory system
1. Structure
+ Nose and mouth: moistened, incubated, filtered
→The mucus helps filter foreign dust and bacteria.
→ The cilia are
responsible for
sweeping this mucus
up the throat and
down to the stomach,
where the stomach
digests them.
+ Pharynx: air passage
into the body- throat.
+ Trachea: Cartilage-C-
shaped is lined in it.
+ Bronchi: the ducts
leading to the lung.
+ Lungs-air sacs: gas exchange and air filtration.
*Lungs*:
a. Alveolus
+ Alveoli:
Have the thin walls.
The place where gas exchange is active.
Epithelium has 2 types of cells:
 Type l (thin): gas exchange area.
 Type II (thick): generate surfactant and keep the balance of fluid
through the lungs.
b. Pulmonary surfactants
*Structure*:
o is a layer of lipids and proteins that covers the lungs’ alveolar
surface.
o Includes about 10% proteins and 90% lipids.
* Pulmonary surfactants in lungs*
o Helps prevent the alveoli in the lungs from collapsing when a
person exhales.
o On the interface of air and water, ST is reduced => Opening the
final airway and airway during respiration.
o Maintain your lungs from drying out.
c. Composition of the surfactants
1c) Phospholipids
• Phospholipids are similar to triglycerides, esterifying fatty acids in the
first and second alcohols positions. These features play a role in
determining the shape and function of cell membranes. In the third
alcohol position, the ester is esterified with the phosphate component

linked to ethanolamine, choline, serine or some other molecule.

•Divided into 2 types: those containing sphingosine (sphingolipids) and
those containing glycerol (glycerol phospholipids) as the backbone.
2c) Proteins
+ Occupy a
small

percentage of their total weight.

+ Surfactants are bound to two proteins:
 Hydrophilic surfactant proteins:
+ SP-A and SP-D:
 Are related to each other and pertains to a subgroup of
animal’s lectins – collectins or C-type lectins.
 Include oligomers possessing a carbohydrate-recognition
region at the COOH-terminus associated with a collagen-like
region at the NH2-terminus.
 Join the frontline defense system of the lungs.
 Functions:
*SP-A*=> + Creates myelin in tubules.
+ Regulates the addition of phospholipids to the
monolayer.
+ Excretion of phospholipids by type II cells and
regulation of absorption.
 + Activated and stimulated chemical reactions
alveolar macrophages.
+ Link and remove
obstacles of
viruses, bacteria.
*SP-D*=> + has an important
responsibility for the
protection of
pathogens.
+ Glycosylation of large proteins (SP-D possesses 355
AAs).
+ Has Carbohydrate-related and calcium-dependent.

 Hydrophobic surfactant proteins:

*SP-B and SP-C*:
 Extremely hydrophobic and has small peptides (35 AA).
 Functions:
+ Supports rapid transport of phospholipids into monolayers
and the ordering of monolayers.
+ Strengthened biophysical characteristics of surfactant.

3c) Collagens: are one of the most abundant proteins in the lungs
(accounts for about 20% of the dry weight in the lungs of an adult).

+Are closely associated with blood vessels, bronchi and alveolar

interstitium (6, 9, 10) - maintains blood vessels and alveolar airways.

+ In the human lung, collagens exist in at least two chains (cyz and al)
formed from amino acids—specific to collagens but not lung specific.

+ Each molecule of collagens has a rod-like structure with a diameter of

3 nm and a length of 300 nm, forming many tightly bundled fibers
about 100 nm in diameter.

• In lung tissue, collagens type I and type III exist most commonly
(accounting for about 90%) - consists of polypeptide chains, also known as
alpha chains, each of which has 1000 amino acids, one third of which is glycine.
  Collagens type I has the characteristic of pulling
 Collagens III to create multidirectional flexibility and aid in lung
compliance.

+ Any change in structure, metabolism or distribution with incorrect

orientation can seriously affect gas exchange (loss of interstitial
collagens disrupts the alveolar network). Normally, the loss of collagens
in the basement membrane will seriously affect the control of the
penetration of transport materials to and from cells in the human lung.

+ Functions:

 Restrict lung expansion.

 Contribute significantly to the recovery of the lung.
 Collagens are an important key in the differentiation, development of
lung structure, mechanical properties and also in the pathogenesis of
lung diseases including pulmonary fibrosis.