Oxygen is one of the basic chemical elements that is produced by plants through the process of photosynthesis and is vital for human survival. During the process of breathing, the blood gets saturated with oxygen which is then get carried through the venous system by hemoglobin protein. In turn, the lack of oxygen in the blood can lead to serious health problems including hypoxemia. This paper will cover oxygen’s transportation path from air to and through blood.
First of all, the process of breathing includes either nasal or oral injection of atmospheric air. From there, the oxygen travels through the trachea into the bronchi principles. The bronchi, in turn, lead the oxygen into the right and left lungs where it gets absorbed by numerous alveoli. Alveoli are very thin and communicate with a large number of capillaries where oxygen enters the erythrocytes and bonds with hemoglobin (Dunn et al., 2016). As the heart pumps blood through the veins, the erythrocytes with oxygen get delivered throughout the entire body. Consequently, the oxygen exits erythrocytes through various capillaries into the tissue fluid due to the difference in the pressure between the fluid and the circulatory system. The oxygen then penetrates the cells where it takes part in numerous chemical and biological reactions.
To sum up, oxygen enters the blood through the process of breathing atmospheric air and travels from the nasal cavity through the trachea and bronchi into the lungs, and then, enters capillaries and erythrocytes. The natural blood flow transports erythrocytes with oxygen to various parts of the human body where this essential element is captured by the pressure difference into the tissue fluid and, finally, is absorbed by cells.
References
Dunn, J. O., Mythen, M. G. and Grocott, M. P. (2016). Physiology of oxygen transport. BJA Education, 16(10), 341-348. Web.