RESPIRATORY

SYSTEM

Illustration by Smart-Servier Medical Art

 FUNCTION OF
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
Oxygen supplier

Elimination

Gas exchange

Passageway

Illustration by Smart-Servier Medical Art

Anatomy of the Respiratory System

Upper Respiratory Tract

Lower Respiratory Tract

UPPER RESPIRATORY TRACT
External nose

Nasal Cavity

Pharynx

Larynx
The External Nose

-encloses the chamber for air inspiration

 Nasal Cavities
Function of Nasal Cavities:

Serves as a passageway for air

Cleans the air

Humidifies and warms the air

Contains the olfactory epithelium

Helps determine voice sound

Paranasal sinuses

• air filled spaces within bone

• open into nasal cavity

• lined with mucous

 Conchae

• bony projections on each side of nasal cavity

• increase surface area of nasal cavity

• help in cleaning, humidifying, warming of air

Nasolacrimal duct

• carry tears from eyes

• open into nasal cavity

Pharynx

Nasopharynx:
• takes in air
Oropharynx:
• extends from uvula to epiglottis
• takes in food, drink, and air
Laryngopharynx:
• extends from epiglottis to esophagus
• food and drink pass through
Larynx

Located in the anterior throat

and extends from the base of
the tongue to the trachea
Consists of 9 cartilages
Thyroid Cartilage

• largest piece of cartilage

• called Adam’s apple
Epiglottis

• piece of cartilage

• flap that prevents swallowed

materials from entering larynx
Vestibular and Vocal Folds
Vestibular folds:
false vocal cords
Vocal Folds:
• source of voice
production
• air moves past them,
they vibrate, and sound
is produced
• force of air determine
loudness
• tension determines pitch
LOWER RESPIRATORY TRACT
Trachea

Bronchi

Tracheobronchial

Alveoli
LOWER RESPIRATORY TRACT
Respiratory System
Trachea

• Windpipe

• Consists of 16 to 20 C-
shaped pieces of cartilage
called tracheal rings
Bronchi
• Divides into right and left main (primary) bronchi in
the lungs at the carina

• Lined with cilia

• Contain C-shaped pieces of cartilage

• Cough reflex

• Smoker’s cough
Bronchi
 Changes in Air Passageway Diameter

• Bronchodilation
• Bronchoconstriction
• Asthma attack
 Thoracic Wall and Muscles of
Respiration
The thoracic wall consists of:

• thoracic vertebrae

• ribs

• costal cartilages

• sternum

• associated muscles
 Thoracic Wall and Muscles of
Respiration

• Thoracic cavity - the space enclosed by the

thoracic wall and the diaphragm
• Diaphragm - a sheet of skeletal muscle separating
the thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity
 Lungs
• Primary organ of
respiration
• Cone shaped
• The base rests on the
diaphragm
• The apex extends
above the clavicle
• Right lung has 3 lobes
• Left lung has 2 lobes
Lungs
 Right lung
Superior lobe

Middle lobe

Inferior lobe
Left lung

Superior lobe

Inferior lobe
Pleural Membranes and Cavities
Pleural cavity:

• space around each lung

Pleura:

• double-layered membrane around lungs

Parietal pleura:

• membrane that lines thoracic cavity

Visceral pleura:

• membrane that covers lung’s surface

Thank you!

Illustration by Smart-Servier Medical Art

Physiology of
the
Respiratory
System

Illustration by Smart-Servier Medical Art

Blood Flow to Lungs

• Oxygenated blood

• Deoxygenated blood

• Pulmonary arteries

• Pulmonary veins.
 Ventilation
Ventilation (breathing):

• the process of moving air in and out of the lungs

Two aspects to ventilation:

• actions of the muscles of respiration

• air pressure gradients

 Muscles of Respiration
Muscles of inspiration:

increase the volume of the thoracic cavity.

Breathing in
• diaphragm

• external intercostals

• pectoralis minor

• sternocleidomastoid

• serratus anterior

• scalene muscles
Inhalation
 Muscles of Respiration
Muscles of expiration:
Breathing out
decrease thoracic volume by depressing the ribs and
sternum.

Lungs
internal intercostals

transverse thoracis Diaphragm

abdominal muscles

Exhalation
 Quiet versus Labored Breathing
• Quiet breathing - expiration is a passive process due to elastic tissue
in the thorax wall and the lungs.

• Labored inspiration - more air moves into the lungs because all of the
inspiratory muscles are active.

• Labored expiration - more air moves out of the lungs due to the
forceful contraction of the internal intercostals and the abdominal
muscles.
 Pulmonary Volumes
Tidal volume (TV):

volume of air inspired and expired during

quiet breathing

Inspiratory reserve volume (IRV):

volume of air that can be inspired forcefully

after a normal inspiration

Expiratory reserve volume (ERV):

volume of air that can be expired forcefully

after a normal expiration

Residual volume (RV):

volume of air remaining in lungs after a

maximal expiration (can’t be measured with
spirometer)
 Pulmonary Capacities
Inspiratory capacity (IC):

the amount of air a person can inspire

maximally after a normal
expiration

Vital capacity (VC):

maximum amount of air a person can

expire after a maximal inspiration
Functional residual capacity (FRC):

the amount of air remaining in the

lungs at the end of a normal expiration

Spirometer:

device that measures pulmonary

volumes
 Alveolar Ventilation
• Alveolar ventilation is the measure of the volume of air available for gas exchange per
minute.

• Only a portion of each breath reaches the alveoli for gas exchange. The remaining area
where no gas exchange occurs is called the dead space.

• Anatomical dead space areas include all the structures of the upper respiratory tract,
and structures of the lower respiratory tract to the terminal bronchioles.
• Physiological dead space is the combination of the anatomical dead space and the
volume of any alveoli with lower than normal gas exchange.
Factors Affecting Ventilation
• Gender
• Age
• Body Size
• Physical Fitness
 Partial Pressure
• the pressure exerted by a specific gas in a mixture of gases

• the atmosphere is 79% nitrogen and 21% O2

• the total atmospheric pressure of all gases at sea level is 760 mm Hg

• the partial pressure for O2 is 160 mm Hg

• the upper case letter P represents partial pressure of a certain gas (Po2)
 Lung Recoil

• is the tendency for an expanded lung to decrease in size

• occurs during quiet expiration

• is due to elastic fibers and thin film of fluid lining alveoli

 Surfactant
• a mixture of lipoproteins
• is produced by secretory cells of the alveoli
• is a fluid layer on the surface lining the alveoli
• reduces surface tension
• keeps lungs from collapsing
 Pleural Pressure
Pleural pressure is:

• pressure in the pleural cavity

• less than alveolar pressure

• keeps the alveoli from collapsing

Pneumothorax

if the thoracic wall or lung is pierced the lungs collapse

 Diffusion Through the Respiratory
Membrane
Three factors influence the rate of gas diffusion through
the respiratory membrane:

• partial pressure gradients for O2 and CO2

• thickness of the respiratory membrane

• surface area of the respiratory membrane

 Gas Exchange in the Tissues
• Blood traveling from the lungs and through capillaries in the
tissues has a higher partial pressure of O2 and a lower partial
pressure of CO2 than the interstitial fluid.

• Oxygen diffuses from capillaries into interstitial fluid.

• CO2 diffuses from the interstitial fluid into the blood in the
capillaries.
 Respiratory Membrane Thickness
• Increased thickness decreases rate of diffusion of gases

• Pulmonary edema decreases diffusion

• Rate of gas exchange is decreased

• O2 exchange is affected before CO2 because CO2 diffuse more easily than
O2
 Respiratory Membrane Surface Area
• Total surface area is about 70 square meters
• May be decreased due to removal of lung tissue, destruction from
cancer, emphysema, tuberculosis
 O2 and CO2 Transport in the Blood
• Once O2 and CO2 enter the blood they interact with components that increase
their solubility.

• Both O2 and CO2 are transported by the protein, hemoglobin.

• CO2 is also transported in other ways.

• CO2 can have a dangerous impact on the blood pH.

 Hemoglobin
• Hemoglobin is a complex protein occupying about the one-third of the total
volume of the cytoplasm of red blood cells.

• Hemoglobin consists of four subunits, each containing one iron-based heme

group which binds O2.

• CO2 can bind to the protein portion of hemoglobin.

 Oxygen Transport in Blood
O2 diffuses through the respiratory membrane into the blood and is transported to all the cells of the body.

98.5% is transported reversibly bound to hemoglobin within red blood cells

1.5% is dissolved in the plasma

 Carbon Dioxide Transport and Blood pH
CO2 diffuses from cells into capillaries

CO2 enters blood and is transported in three ways:

7% is dissolved in blood plasma

93% enters red blood cells where

23% is bound to hemoglobin

70% is transported as bicarbonate ions

 Regulation of Ventilation
• Respiratory rate is regulated to maintain gas concentrations in the blood within
normal limits.

• The body is particularly sensitive to changes in CO2 levels and blood pH.

• Neurons in the medulla oblongata control the rate of ventilation through

stimulation of the muscles of respiration.
 Regulation of Ventilation
The Medullary respiratory center in the medulla oblongata consists of:

Dorsal respiratory group (DRG) - most active during inspiration

Ventral respiratory group (VRG) - active during inspiration and expiration

VRG contains the pre-Bötzinger complex which is believed to establish the

basic rhythm of respiration
 Regulation of Ventilation
The pontine respiratory group is a collection of neurons in the pons
that helps regulate respiration rate.

Precise function is unknown

Some neurons are active during inspiration, some during expiration, and
others during both inspiration and expiration
Thank you!

Illustration by Smart-Servier Medical Art