Term 1 Week 2 and 3

The Respiratory System

Primary 6 Science
By Ms. Chat
 Function of the Respiratory System

∙ Oversees gas exchanges (oxygen and carbon

dioxide) between the blood and external
environment
∙ Exchange of gasses takes place within the lungs
in the alveoli(only site of gas exchange, other
structures passageways
∙ Passageways to the lungs purify, warm, and
humidify the incoming air
∙ Shares responsibility with cardiovascular system
∙ It consists of organs and various parts of your body
involved with breathing – the process in which your
body exchanges oxygen and carbon dioxide.
 Organs of the Respiratory system

∙ Nose
∙ Pharynx
∙ Larynx
∙ Trachea
∙ Bronchi
∙ Lungs –
alveoli

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Figure 13.1 Slide 13.1
 1. Mouth and Nose
• Air enters our respiratory systems
either through our noses or our
mouths.

• If oxygen-rich air enters the body

through the nose, it is warmed and
humidified.

• There are tiny hairs all along our

respiratory passageways (cilia) that
filter dust and other particles out of
the air we breathe.
 2. Trachea / Windpipe
• The trachea is a tube that enters the
chest and allows air to flow from the
mouth into the bronchi and from there
into the lungs.

• It is kept open by rings of cartilage.

• The trachea also contains cilia that

works to remove dust particles and
germs from the air during inhalation

• Sneezing or coughing is a result of the

cilia working together with mucous
linings to expel the unwanted particles
from your body.
 3. Bronchi
• The trachea splits into two air tubes,
called bronchi, that connect to each
of the lungs.

• These tubes divide even further into

smaller bronchi that evolve into even
smaller bronchi, called bronchioles.

• Bronchioles then end in alveoli that

resemble tiny ‘bags’ of air in the
lungs.

• This network of alveoli, bronchioles

and bronchi is known as the
Bronchial Tree.
 Bronchioles

∙ Smallest
branches of
the bronchi
Figure 13.5a

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide

 4. Lungs
• The lungs are the main organs
of the respiratory system.

• The tiny air bags in the lungs,

the alveoli, are surrounded by
small capillaries where the
exchanges of oxygen and
carbon dioxide takes place.

• The lungs also consist of

elastic tissues that allows
them to inflate (when
inhaling) and deflate (when
exhaling) without losing their
shape.
 5. Diaphragm
• This dome-shaped muscle
below the lungs enables
you to breathe.

• When you inhale, it moves

downwards towards your
abdomen and your lungs
fill with air.

• When you exhale, it

relaxes and moves upwards
and forces the air out of
your lungs.

• The diaphragm is the main

muscle used for breathing.
 Main Processes in the Respiratory System
Three distinct processes occur in the respiratory system:

Breathing takes place when we take oxygen into the lungs and push
Breathing carbon dioxide out of the body. Breathing occurs in two phases:
• Inhalation - drawing air in
• Exhalation - pushing air out
An exchange of gases takes place at two locations by a process called
Gaseous diffusion:
exchange • in the alveoli, oxygen diffuses into the blood from the lungs and
carbon dioxide diffuses from the blood into the lungs.
• at the body tissues oxygen diffuses from the blood into the cells and
carbon dioxide from the cells diffuses into the blood.

Cellular respiration occurs within the mitochondria of cells to

release the chemical energy in food.
 Health Issues Involving the
Respiratory System
Asthma caused by allergies that inflame and narrow the
airways.
Lung a disease that are mostly caused by smoking or
cancer severe air pollution.
swelling of the lining of the bronchi due to
Bronchitis infection which causes coughing and that
makes it difficult to get air into their lungs.
a highly infectious, deadly disease caused
Tuberculosis by the bacteria, Mycobacterium