I PUC Biology

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CHAPTER - BREATHING AND EXCHANGE OF GASES

Respiratory organs in animals (recall only); Human respiratory system; Mechanism of breathing
and its regulation, Exchange of gases; transport of gases and regulation of respiration; Respiratory
volumes; Disorders related to respiration – asthma, emphysema, occupational respiratory disorders

Introduction - Living organisms depend on energy for their mere existence and maintenance of life. The
energy is derived from the oxidation of food substances which occurs in presence of oxygen. In the process
carbon dioxide is also released and accumulation of carbon dioxide in the cells is harmful. Therefore oxygen
has to be continuously supplied to the living cells and carbon dioxide has to be removed from the cells. The
process of exchange of oxygen from the atmosphere with carbon dioxide produced by cells is called
breathing or respiration. The respiratory system in man helps in exchanging these two gases between the
atmosphere and the cells.
Respiratory Organs in Animals – The mechanism of breathing varies in different groups of animals
depending upon their habitat and level of organization.

• Lower invertebrates like sponges, coelenterates, flatworms – exchange O2 with CO2 by simple diffusion
all over the body surface.
• Earthworms – exchange gases during breathing using their moist cuticle.
• Insects – transport atmospheric air within the body with the help of tracheal tubes.
• Fishes, aquatic arthropods and most of the molluscs – use gills for breathing.
• Terrestrial animals (including reptiles, birds and mammals) – use lungs for exchange of gases.
• Amphibians – exchange gases using their moist skin.
Human respiratory system – It consists of external nostrils, nasal cavity, a pair of internal nostrils,
pharynx, larynx, trachea, lungs containing primary bronchi, secondary bronchi, tertiary bronchi and the
alveoli.
External nostrils, nasal cavity and internal nostrils – They are a pair of openings present at the tip of the
nose. They lead into the nasal cavity. The nasal cavity is divided into two longitudinal parts by a nasal
septum. The anterior part of the nasal cavity is lined by skin having coarse hairs that filter out the larger dust
particles. The nasal cavity opens into the pharynx through a pair of openings called internal nostrils.
Pharynx – It is the common passage for food and air. The upper part of the pharynx is called nasopharynx.
The nasopharynx helps in the passage if air.
Larynx – It is present in the upper end of the trachea. It is commonly called voice box or sound box. It is
supported by nine pieces of cartilages of the thyroid cartilage is the largest. It forms the Adam’s apple in
males. The mucus membrane of the larynx has two pairs of folds of which the lower pair constitutes the
vocal cords. They help in speech. The nasopharynx opens through glottis of the larynx region into the
trachea. During swallowing, the glottis is covered by a cartilaginous flap called epiglottis to prevent the
entry of food into the larynx.
Trachea (wind pipe) – It is a long tube measuring 12 cm located in front of the oesophagus. The trachea is
a passage for air into the lungs. The wall of the trachea is supported by 16 to 20 C shaped hyaline
cartilagenous rings. They prevent the trachea from collapsing while swallowing food. The lower end of the
trachea divides into two branches called primary bronchi. The primary bronchi open into the lungs at the
region of hilum. Each primary bronchus divides into secondary bronchi. Each of them branches repeatedly

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to form terminal bronchioles. The terminal bronchioles give rise to a number of very thin, irregular – walled
and vascularised bag like structures called alveoli.

Lungs – There are two lungs present on either side of the heart, in the thoracic cavity.
The thoracic cavity is formed dorsally by the vertebral column, ventrally by the sternum, laterally by the ribs
and on the lower side by the dome shaped diaphragm. Each lung is cone shaped with the base being broad
which rests on the diaphragm. The apex is pointed and is directed towards the neck. The lung is surrounded
by two membranes called outer and inner pleural membranes. The right lung is divided into three lobes and
has a broader base. The left lung is divided into two lobes and has a narrow base.
Mechanism of breathing - It involves the following steps.
1. Breathing or ventilation of lungs
2. External respiration
3. Transport of gases
4. Internal respiration and
5. Cellular oxidation
1. Breathing or ventilation of lungs – It is defined as the exchange of gaseous materials between the lungs
and the surrounding environment. It involves two steps namely inspiration and expiration.
❖ Inspiration – It is the process of intake of air. It is an active process. It occurs by the following
steps.
➢ The phrenic muscles of the diaphragm contract. As a result, the dome shaped diaphragm becomes
flat increasing the vertical dimension of the chest cavity.
➢ The external intercostal muscles between the ribs contract, raising the ribs and the chest bone
upwards and outwards which further increases the dimension of the chest cavity.
➢ This decreases the pressure in the lungs (from 760 mm Hg to 758 mm Hg) compared to the
atmosphere. So the air rushes into the lungs from the atmosphere until the pressure in the lungs
equals the atmospheric pressure.

❖ Expiration – It is the process of expelling air. It is a passive process. It occurs by the following
steps.
➢ The phrenic muscles of the diaphragm relax pushing it up into a dome shape. This decreases the
vertical dimension.
➢ The intercostal muscles relax, bringing back the ribs and chest bone to the original position. This
further decreases the thoracic volume.
➢ The pressure in the lungs increases (from 760 mm Hg to 762 mm Hg) compared to the
atmospheric pressure. Hence the air is expelled out of the lungs.
o After expiration and before the next inspiration, there is a brief period of rest called pause.

Note: The apparatus used to measure the volume of air exchanged during breathing is called respirometer or
spirometer.

Respiratory volumes and capacities

• Tidal volume (TV) – volume of air inspired or expired during normal respiration.
• Inspiratory reserve volume (TRV) – additional volume of air which can be inspired by a person due
to forcible inspiration.

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• Expiratory reserve volume (ERV) – additional volume of air which can be expired by a person due to
forcible expiration.
• Residual volume (RV) – volume of air remaining in the lungs even after a forcible expiration.
• Inspiratory capacity (IC) – total volume of air a person can inspire after a normal expiration.
• Expiratory capacity (EC) – total volume of air a person can expire after a normal expiration.
• Functional residual capacity (FRC) – volume of air that will remain in the lungs after a normal
expiration. This includes ERV + RV.
• Vital capacity (VC) - the maximum volume air a person can breathe in after a forced expiration. This
includes ERV, TV and IRV.
• Total lung capacity – the total volume of air accommodated in the lungs at the end of a forced
inspiration. This includes RV, ERV, TV and IRV.
2. External respiration – it is the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between alveolar air and blood in
the alveolar capillaries. It takes place because of two factors namely respiratory membrane and difference in
the partial pressure.
▪ Respiratory membrane –The wall of the alveolus and also the wall of the blood capillary are made up
of a single layer of epithelium. These two walls with a thin space in between constitute the
respiratory membrane. It favours diffusion of gases.
▪ Difference in partial pressure – Air is a mixture of gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen,
hydrogen and water vapour. Each gas exerts its own pressure known as partial pressure, denoted by
the letter P.
➢ The partial pressure of oxygen PO2 in the alveolar air is 104 mm of Hg and that in blood
capillaries is 40 mm of Hg. Thus oxygen from the alveolar air diffuses into the blood.
➢ The partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the alveolar air is 36 mm of Hg and that in the blood
capillaries is 46 mm of Hg. Thus carbon dioxide from the blood capillaries diffuses into the
alveolar air.

3. Transport of gases – It involves

A. Transport of oxygen from the lungs to the cells through the blood
B. Transport of carbon dioxide from the cells to the lungs through blood
Transport of oxygen – oxygen is carried by the blood in two ways.
Physical solution – oxygen does not dissolve readily in water, so only 3 – 4 % oxygen in blood gets
dissolved in the plasma and is carried as physical solution.

As oxyhaemoglobin – haemoglobin is a respiratory pigment present in the RBCs of the blood. It has
great affinity to oxygen. It transports 96 – 97 % oxygen. It has four atoms of iron, each capable of
binding and carrying one oxygen molecule and forms an unstable compound called oxy-
haemoglobin. One haemoglobin transports four oxygen molecules.

Hb + 4 O2 → Hb(O2) 4
oxyhaemoglobin
This process is called oxygenation. When the blood reaches the tissues, oxy-haemoglobin dissociates
and oxygen is released into the cells. The haemoglobin returns back to the lungs.

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Binding of oxygen with haemoglobin is primarily related to partial pressure of O 2 (pO2), and also
partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2), hydrogen ion concentration and temperature.
When percentage saturation of haemoglobin with O2 is plotted against the pO2, a sigmoid curve
known as oxygen dissociation curve is obtained. This curve is useful in studying the effect of factors
like pCO2, H+ concentration etc., on binding of oxygen with haemoglobin.

▪ In the alveoli, there is high pO2, low pCO2, lesser H+ concentration and lower temperature.
These factors are favourable for the formation of oxyhaemoglobin.
▪ In the tissues, there is low pO2, high pCO2, high H+ concentration and higher temperature.
These conditions favour the dissociation of oxygen from the oxyhaemoglobin.
▪ This clearly indicates that oxygen binds to the haemoglobin in the lung surface and gets
dissociated at the tissues.

Note: Every 100 ml of oxygenated blood can deliver around 5 ml of oxygen to the tissues under normal
physiological conditions.
Transport of carbon dioxide – the carbon dioxide produced by the cells has to be transported by the blood
to the lungs. It is transported by plasma and RBCs of the blood in the form of carbonic acid, carbamino
compounds and bicarbonates.
As carbonic acid by the plasma – about 10% of the CO2 dissolves in the water of the plasma to form
carbonic acid and is carried to the lungs.
CO2 + H2O → H2CO3
As carbamino compounds by the RBC – in the RBCs, about 20% of carbon dioxide combines with the
amino group of haemoglobin to form carbamino haemoglobin and in this form it is transported to the lungs.

HbNH2 + CO2 → HbNHCOOH or HbCO2

As bicarbonates by the RBC – remaining 70% of carbon dioxide diffuses into the RBC and combines with
water to form carbonic acid in presence of carbonic anhydrase enzyme.
CO2 + H2O → H2CO3

The carbonic acid formed is unstable. It very soon dissociates into H + ions and HCO3 – (bicarbonates) ions.
The bicarbonate ions diffuse into the plasma and combine with sodium and potassium ions to for sodium
bicarbonate and potassium bicarbonate.
H2CO3 → H+ + HCO3-

Na+ + HCO3 → NaHCO3

K+ + HCO3 → KHCO3

4. Internal respiration – it is defined as exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the blood and
tissue cells. This takes place throughout the body. The oxygen found in the blood diffuses into the lymph
and then into the cells of the tissues. The carbon dioxide from the cells diffuses into the lymph and then into
the blood.
5. Cellular respiration – It includes various chemical changes taking place inside the cells leading to the
production of energy in the form of ATP.

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Regulation of Respiration - A specialised centre present in the medulla region of the brain called respiratory
rhythm centre is primarily responsible for rhythm respiration.
Another centre present in the pons region of the brain called pneumotaxic centre which moderates the
functions of the respiratory rhythm centre.

DISORDERS OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

Asthma – it is a respiratory disorder in which there is inflammation of the bronchi and bronchioles causing
difficulty in breathing.
Emphysema – in this respiratory disorder, the walls of the alveoli get damaged due to which respiratory
surface is decreased. Cigarette smoking is one of the major cause for emphysema.
Occupational respiratory disorders – in case of long exposure to dust in some industries involving
grinding and stone breaking, the defence mechanism of the body cannot cope up with the situation and the
lungs get damaged. Accumulation of inhaled particles like metals, coal, silica, asbestos causes
pneumoconiosis. When fibrous connective tissue proteins get deposited in lungs, the lung tissues become
thick and inflexible. This condition is called fibrosis, which leads to breathlessness and persistent cough.

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