In: Anatomy and Physiology
Identify the ways in which Carbon dioxide is transported in the blood.
The transportation of the carbon dioxide in the blood occurs via three mechanisms ,which are as follows -
1. Direct dissolution in blood - The carbon dioxide has higher solubility in blood compare to oxygen.Thus,by dissolving into the blood or plasma, 5-7 % of the carbon dioxide gets transported.
2. Carried as a bicarbonate ion - Majority of the carbon dioxide around 85 % of it ,get transported in the form of bicarbonate ion. When carbon dioxide get into the red blood cells, the conversion of carbon dioxide into the carbonic acid occurs via the enzyme carbonic anhydrase. The carbonic acid dissociates into the bicarbonate ion and the hydrogen ions. The blood uptakes carbon dioxide as carbon dioxide rapidly converted into the bicarbonate ions. The bicarbonate ions exchanged out into the liquid constituents of the blood through exchange of chloride ions, when blood reaches to lungs.
3.Binding with hemoglobin -Carbon dioxide intend to bind with the plasma proteins or directly get into the red blood cells and binds with the hemoglobin and forms the carbaminohemoglobin.By this way around 10 % of carbon dioxide gets transported into the blood and reaches the lung.