As a respiratory physiologist, I can explain the process of oxygen entering the bloodstream. When we inhale,
oxygen from the air travels down the trachea into the bronchi, which branch into smaller and smaller tubes until they reach the tiny air sacs known as
alveoli in the lungs. These
alveoli are surrounded by a network of tiny blood vessels called
capillaries.
The
oxygen in the air within the alveoli diffuses across the thin walls of the alveoli and into the
capillaries, where it binds to a protein in the
red blood cells called
hemoglobin. Hemoglobin has a high affinity for
oxygen and can carry up to four molecules of
oxygen at a time. This
oxygen-hemoglobin complex is what gives arterial blood its bright red color.
Once the
oxygen is bound to the hemoglobin, the
red blood cells transport it through the bloodstream to the body's tissues and cells. At the cellular level,
oxygen is released from hemoglobin and diffuses into the cells where it is used for cellular respiration, which is the process by which cells produce energy.
Here's the translation in Chinese:
作为一位呼吸生理学家,我可以解释氧气进入血液的过程。当我们吸气时,空气中的
氧气通过气管进入支气管,支气管分支成越来越小的管子,直到它们到达肺部被称为
肺泡的微小空气囊。这些
肺泡被一个称为
毛细血管的微小血管网络所包围。
肺泡内空气中的
氧气穿过肺泡的薄壁扩散到
毛细血管中,在那里它与
红细胞中的一种叫做
血红蛋白的蛋白质结合。血红蛋白对
氧气有很强的亲和力,一次可以携带多达四个
氧气分子。这种
氧气-血红蛋白复合体赋予动脉血鲜红色。
一旦
氧气与血红蛋白结合,
红细胞就通过血液将氧气输送到身体的组织和细胞。在细胞层面,
氧气从血红蛋白中释放出来,扩散到细胞中,在那里它被用于细胞呼吸,即细胞产生能量的过程。
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