Respiratory System Function: Gas Exchange and Transport

This lecture covers the dynamics of pulmonary capillaries, gas solubility, gas diffusion, alveolar gas composition, hypoxic and hypercapnic stimuli, ventilation-perfusion ratio, gas diffusion in the lungs and peripheral tissues, gas diffusion capacity, hemoglobin and its affinity, saturation/dissociation curve, and Bohr effect on hemoglobin dissociation. Specific topics include the properties of pulmonary capillaries, gas diffusion in fluids and tissues, composition of alveolar air, air renewal in alveoli, ventilation-perfusion ratio impact, oxygen and carbon dioxide diffusion in blood and tissues, and the effects of metabolism and tissue circulation on gas concentration.