Respiratory System Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards for reviewing the respiratory system lecture notes.

Diffusion

Movement of something from high to low concentration

Gills

Thin tissue filaments that are highly branched and folded and close to vasculature, used by aquatic organisms to obtain oxygen from water

Tracheal System

Network of small tubes (made of chitin) that carries oxygen to entire body in insects.

Spiracles

Openings along the thorax and abdomen of insects that connect to the tubular network, allowing O2 to enter and CO2 to exit.

Inhalation

Air enters nasal cavity where it is warmed and humidified

Trachea function

Funnel inhaled air to the lungs and the exhaled air back out

Respiratory Bronchioles

Lack cartilage and rely on inhaled air to support their shape.

Alveolar Sacs

Resemble bunches of grapes tethered to the end of the bronchioles-each containing many alveoli

Atmospheric gas

Mixture of nitrogen (N2; 78.6%), oxygen (O2; 20.9%), water vapor (H2O; 0.5%), and carbon dioxide (CO2; 0.04%)

Partial Pressure

The pressure for an individual gas in a mixture

Tidal Volume (TV)

Air that is inspired and expired during a normal breath.

Expiratory Reserve Volume (ERV)

Additional amount of air that can be exhaled after a normal exhalation.

Inspiratory Reserve Volume (IRV)

Additional amount of air that can be inhaled after a normal inhalation.

Residual Volume (RV)

Amount of air left after the expiratory reserve volume is exhaled.

Boyle’s Law

Pressure and volume are inversely related

Diffusion

Movement of a substance down a concentration gradient.

Pleural Sac

Membranous sac around each lung

Visceral Pleura

Contacts the lung

Parietal Pleura

Contacts the thoracic cavity

Alveolar Ventilation

Amount of air exchanged in alveoli.

Surfactant

Mixture of phospholipids and lipoproteins that lower surface tensions in the alveoli.

Compliance

How well the lungs expand.

Resistance

How much obstruction exists in the airways.

Restrictive Diseases

Lungs cannot fully expand.

Obstructive Diseases

Air from inhalation cannot be fully exhaled.

Hemoglobin

Protein found in red blood cells made of four subunits that surround a central iron containing heme group

Sickle Cell Anemia

The shape of the red blood cell is crescent-shaped, elongated, and stiffened, reducing its ability to deliver oxygen.

Thalassemia

Defect in either the alpha or the beta subunit of Hb. Patients with thalassemia produce a high number of red blood cells that have less hemoglobin

Pulmonary Gas Exchange

The process where deoxygenated blood enters the respiratory capillaries and oxygen diffuses from the alveoli into the blood, and CO_{2} diffuses from the blood into the alveoli.

Gas Transport

The process where blood transports oxygen to the tissues and picks up carbon dioxide.

Tissue Gas Exchange

The point at which oxygen diffuses out of the blood and CO_{2} diffuses out of the tissues into the blood.

Carbaminohemoglobin

CO{2} readily binds to amino groups on the Hb molecule to form carbaminohemoglobin (HbCO{2})

Carbonic Anhydrase (CA)

Enzyme that catalyzes the reaction CO{2} + H{2}O ↔ HCO_{3}- + H+

Chloride Shift

Chloride ions replace the lost negative charge of bicarbonate without changing the electrical charge of the red blood cell

Buffering

The process where hydrogen ions bind to hemoglobin, which prevents drastic changes in blood pH

Respiratory Centers

The respiratory rate and tidal volume are regulated by the respiratory center, which is composed of several groups of neurons in the medulla oblongata and pons