Respiratory Physiology

Sharron King
 Learning Objectives
 Describe the three processes of respiration
1.Pulmonary ventilation
2.External respiration
3.Internal respiration
 Identify the various lung volumes and capacities
 Describe O2 and CO2 transport
 Identify the factors that control respiration
 Explain how smoking reduces respiratory
efficiency
 Three Processes of
Respiration (p. 830)
1. Pulmonary ventilation (breathing)
– physical movement of air into and out of lungs
– inspiration - active
– expiration - usually passive
2. Pulmonary (external) respiration
– gas exchange at lung
3. Tissue (internal) respiration
– gas exchange at tissues
 Inhalation
 Inhalation
 Active process
– During quiet breathing contraction of
diaphragm and external intercostals
expands thoracic cavity
– Decreases pressure (Boyle’s law –
volume inversely related to pressure)
– air flows down pressure gradient
 Exhalation
 Exhalation during quiet
breathing is passive
process
– Elastic recoil of chest wall
and lungs
– Due to:
 Recoil of elastic fibres
 Inward pull of surface
tension of alveolar fluid
 Deep Forceful Breathing
 Deep Inhalation
– During deep forceful inhalation accessory muscles of inhalation
participate to increase size of thoracic cavity
 Sternocleidomastoid – elevate sternum
 Scalenes – elevate first two ribs
 Pectoralis minor – elevate 3rd–5th ribs

 Deep Exhalation
– Exhalation during forceful breathing is active process
 Muscles of exhalation increase pressure in abdomen and thorax
– Abdominals
– Internal intercostals
 Factors affecting pulmonary
ventilation
 Surface tension of alveolar fluid
– surfactant
 Lung compliance
– Elasticity
– Surface tension
 Airway resistance
 Clinical Note Emphysema
 Enlargement of air R. Lower lobe full
spaces caused by of air pockets
Black deposits from
destruction of alveolar Cigarette residue
walls
 Reduces surface area
for gas exchange Emphysema
Warnock (1999)

 Increases work of
breathing
 Emphysema

 Emphysema causes
air to becomes
trapped in the lungs
 Results in ‘barrel
chest’

Emphysema (n.d.)
 Respiratory rates and volumes
(p. 837)
 Respiratory Minute Volume
– Total volume of air inhaled/exhaled per min
 Frequency x tidal volume

 Average healthy adult:

– 12 breaths per min x 500 ml tidal volume

 30% of tidal volume remains in anatomic dead space

 Alveolar ventilation rate
– Volume of air per min that reaches alveoli (i.e. 70% of tidal
volume)
 Lung volumes and capacities
 4 lung volumes:
– tidal (~500 ml)
– inspiratory reserve (~3100 ml)
– expiratory reserve (~1200 ml)
– residual (~1200 ml)

 4 lung capacities
– inspiratory (~3600 ml)
– functional residual (~2400 ml)
– vital (~4800 ml)
– total lung (~6000 ml)
 Gas Exchange
 Exchange of O2 and CO2 between alveolar air and blood
occurs via passive diffusion
 Governed by
– Dalton’s Law
 Each gas in a mixture exerts own pressure
– Partial pressure

– Henry’s Law
 Quantity of gas that dissolves in liquid proportional to partial
pressure and solubility coefficient
– Solubility of CO2 greater than O2 (24x)
 External and Internal Respiration
 External respiration
– Diffusion of:
 O2 from alveoli to blood
 CO2 from blood to alveoli
– Blood leaving pulmonary
capillaries mixes with blood
draining lung tissue
 PO2 of blood in pulmonary
veins lower than in
pulmonary capillaries

 Internal respiration
– Diffusion of:
 O2 from blood to tissues
 CO2 from tissues to blood

Jenkins, Kemmitz & Tortora (2007 p. 861)

 Respiration
 Effective external and internal respiration depends on:
1. partial pressure differences
 gases move from high to low partial pressures
2. surface area for gas exchange
3. diffusion distance
4. Molecular weight and solubility of gas
 O2 has lower molecular weight than CO2
– O2 would be expected to diffuse 1.2x faster
 CO2 24x more soluble than O2
 Net result: CO2 diffusion approx 20x faster than O2 diffusion
 Oxygen transport in Blood
(p. 842)
 Oxygen transport
– 1.5% dissolved in
plasma
– 98.5% bound to
hemoglobin (Hb)
 Oxyhemoglobin
Saturation Curve :
– higher PO results in
2
greater Hb saturation
 CO2 Transport
 Carbon dioxide transport:
– ~9% dissolved in plasma
– ~13% as carbamino compounds
 Most combined with Hb
– ~78% converted to HC03-
 CO2 + H2O  H2CO3  H+ + HCO3-

 Haldane effect
– Inverse relationship between amount of Hb-O2 and CO2 carrying
capacity of blood
 Hb binds and transports more CO2 than O2
 Hb buffers more H+ than Hb-O2
– Promotes conversion of CO2 to HCO3- via carbonic anhydrase reaction
 Key Concepts
 O2 mostly transported in blood bound to
hemoglobin
 If the PO2 increases Hb binds O2
 If PO2 decreases Hb releases O2
 CO2 mostly transported in blood as HCO3-
 Lesser amounts of CO2 are bound to Hb or
dissolved in plasma
 Respiratory centers (p. 848)
 Basic rhythm of ventilation
controlled by medullary rhythmicity
area (medulla oblongata)
 Inspiratory area (Dorsal Resp.Group)
– determines basic rhythm of
breathing
– causes contraction of diaphragm and
external intercostals
 Expiratory area (Ventral Resp. Group)
– Inactive during normal quiet
breathing
– Activated by inspiratory area during
forceful breathing
– Causes contraction of internal
intercostals and abdominal muscles
 Respiratory centers
 Transition between inhalation
and exhalation controlled by:
– Pneumotaxic area
 located in pons
 inhibits inspiratory area of
medulla to stop inhalation
– Breathing more rapid when
pneumotaxic area active
– Apneustic area
 located in pons
 stimulates inspiratory area of
medulla to prolong inhalation
 Regulation of Respiratory centers
 Basic rhythm of ventilation coordinated by inspiratory area of
respiratory centre, but modified by:
– Cortical influences
 Voluntary control over breathing
– Hypothalamus and limbic system
 Emotional stimuli
– Proprioceptors
 Upper motor neurons of primary motor cortex also stimulate inspiratory area
– Inflation (Hering-Breuer) reflex
 Stretch receptors in walls of bronchi and bronchioles
– Inhibit inspiratory and apneustic areas
 causes exhalation to begin to protect against overinflation
– Chemoreceptors
 Increased PCO2, or reduced pH or PO2 causes chemoreceptors to stimulate
inspiratory area of respiratory centre
 Problem solving
 Josh hyperventilates for several minutes
before diving into a pool. Shortly after he
enters the water he blacks out and almost
drowns. What caused this to happen?
 Regulation of Respiratory centers
 Rhythm of ventilation also modified by:
– Temperature
  temp =  ventilation (and vice versa)
 sudden cold stimulus may cause apnea
– Pain
 Sudden severe pain can cause apnea
 Prolonged somatic pain increases respiratory rate
 Visceral pain may slow respiratory rate
– Irritation of airways
– Blood pressure
 BP = ventilation (and vice versa)
– Attempt to reduce venous return via respiratory pump?
 Effects of smoking
 Smoking reduces
respiratory efficiency
– Deposits tar & other
chemicals
– swelling of mucosal lining
and increased production
of mucus
 Impedes airflow
– destroys cilia and inhibits
their movement
 Reduces removal of excess
mucus and debris
Smokers lungs
Bodies The exhibition March 2006
 Smoking
– Nicotine constricts terminal bronchioles
 Reduces airflow into and out of lung
– CO binds irreversibly to Hb
 Reduces blood oxygen carrying capacity
– Destruction of elastic fibers (prime cause of
emphysema)
 Reduced lung compliance
 Collapse of small bronchioles during exhalation
– traps air in alveoli during exhalation
 Reduces efficiency of gas exchange
 References
 Bodies: The exhibition 2006, updated 29 March 2006, MOSI, viewed 20 May 2006,
<http://www.bodiestheexhibition.com/bodies.html>.
 Emphysema (n.d.) Viewed 14 August 2006,
<http://www.physicaltherapy.ca/cardio/Emphysema1.html>
 Jenkins, GW, Kemmitz, CP & Tortora, GJ 2007, Anatomy and Physiology: From
Science to Life, John Wiley & Sons Inc, New Jersey.
 Martini, FH 2006, Fundamentals of Anatomy and Physiology, 7th edn, Pearson
Benjamin Cummings, San Francisco.
 Small Cell Lung Cancer 2005, updated 10 April, AstraZeneca, viewed 12 July 2006,
<http://www.astrazeneca.no/sykdommer/lungekreft/for_helsepersonell/typer_lungekr
eft.html>.
 Warnock, ML 1999, Overview of Pulmonary Pathology, updated 5 Feb 2006, viewed
20 May 2006, <http://pathhsw5m54.ucsf.edu/overview/emphysema.html>.