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L
Assistant Professor
Dept of Physiology
SSMC
Atmosphere
Alveoli
Blood
Tissues
Transport of oxygen
• Oxygen is carried by blood in two forms:
(i) dissolved in plasma
(ii) combined with hemoglobin
PO2 mm Hg PCO2 mm Hg
Alveolus 104 45
Arterial blood 95 40
Venous Blood 40 45
Tissue 40 46
Uptake of oxygen by pulmonary
blood
O2 uptake during exercise
• Resting O2 requirement: 250ml/min
• O2 requirement increases by 20 times
during strenuous exercise
• Increased cardiac output reduces blood
exposure time to alveolar O2
• Blood is still almost saturated because:
(i) increased diffusing capacity for O2
(ii) safety period for O2 diffusion
O2 transport in arterial blood
• Pulmonary venous blood has PO2 of 104
mm Hg
• Aortic blood has PO2 of 95 mm Hg
• Admixture of deoxygenated blood from
bronchial circulation
Diffusion of O2 into tissue fluids
• Concentration gradient of 55 mm Hg
• Tissue PO2 depends on:
(i) rate of oxygen transport to tissues by
blood
(ii) rate of tissue metabolism
• Intracellular PO2 ranges from 5 to 40 mm
Hg
• 1 to 3mm Hg of tissue PO2 is adequate to
support chemical reactions of the cells
Transport of oxygen in blood
• Chemical combination with hemoglobin-
oxygenation- reversible- 97%
• Dissolved in plasma- 3%
Hemoglobin
• Pigment present in RBCs
• Iron-protoporphyrin-globin
• Iron is in ferrous form
• Fe2+ binds 4 pyrrole rings, a polypeptide
chain and a molecule of oxygen
• Adult hemoglobin- HbA
• Fetal hemoglobin- HbF
Oxygen-hemoglobin dissociation
curve
• Loose and reversible combination of oxygen
molecule with heme
Reduced pH
Carbon monoxide
Myoglobin
HbF
Transport of O2 in dissolved form