Name the two ways O2 is transported in the blood, andstate the percentage of total O2 transport for which eachmethod is responsible.
Name the two ways O2 is transported in the blood, and
state the percentage of total O2 transport for which each
method is responsible.
The blood in the circulatory system or cardiovascular system helps to transport the gases. It mainly helps to transport two gases, oxygen and carbon dioxide. Oxygen gases will be easily diffused into the bloodstream from the alveoli and these oxygen molecules will then be transported to cells and tissues with the help of blood. While the carbon dioxide is diffused out of the blood into the alveoli to expel them out from the body. Both these gases are transported by different mechanisms.
We look at the oxygen transport mechanism in brief. The oxygen is transported by two ways in the body. In one way it is directly dissolved in the blood and in another way it is carried with the help of a protein called hemoglobin. Nearly 98.5% (nearly, 97-98.5%) percent of oxygen is transported with the help of hemoglobin while the rest 1.5% (nearly. 1.5-3 %) only is contributed by the dissolved oxygen. Therefore, transport of oxygen by hemoglobin is considered as the most efficient oxygen transport. This protein consists of two alpha units and two beta units and each has iron containing a porphyrin ring. This iron helps to bind to the oxygen molecule and gives the hemoglobin its characteristic red color. Therefore, a single hemoglobin protein will help to carry nearly 4 oxygen molecules. Since the blood has more hemoglobin more oxygen will therefore be transported by this protein.
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