{"id":19748,"date":"2025-06-13T21:16:26","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T21:16:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/?p=19748"},"modified":"2025-06-13T21:16:27","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T21:16:27","slug":"how-is-the-majority-of-co2-generated-by-respiring-tissue-transported-to-back-to-the-lungs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/how-is-the-majority-of-co2-generated-by-respiring-tissue-transported-to-back-to-the-lungs\/","title":{"rendered":"How is the majority of CO2 generated by respiring tissue transported to back to the lungs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How is the majority of CO2 generated by respiring tissue transported to back to the lungs?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The correct answer and explanation is:<\/strong><\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Correct Answer:<\/strong>
The majority of CO\u2082 generated by respiring tissue is transported back to the lungs as bicarbonate ions (HCO\u2083\u207b) in the blood plasma<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Explanation (300 Words):<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Carbon dioxide (CO\u2082) is a waste product produced by cells during aerobic respiration. Once generated in tissues, CO\u2082 must be transported to the lungs for exhalation. The human body has three main mechanisms for transporting CO\u2082 in the blood:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Dissolved in plasma (7-10%)<\/strong>: A small portion of CO\u2082 is transported directly dissolved in the blood plasma. Since CO\u2082 is somewhat soluble in water, it can dissolve in plasma, but this accounts for only a minor portion of total transport.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Bound to hemoglobin (20-23%)<\/strong>: CO\u2082 can bind directly to the amino groups on hemoglobin (not the heme group that binds oxygen), forming a compound called carbaminohemoglobin<\/em>. This mechanism facilitates CO\u2082 transport but is limited in capacity.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. As bicarbonate ions (70%)<\/strong>: The vast majority of CO\u2082 (about 70%) is converted into bicarbonate (HCO\u2083\u207b) ions in red blood cells. This process is facilitated by the enzyme carbonic anhydrase<\/strong>, which catalyzes the reaction: CO2+H2O\u2192H2CO3\u2192H++HCO3\u2212\\text{CO}_2 + \\text{H}_2\\text{O} \\rightarrow \\text{H}_2\\text{CO}_3 \\rightarrow \\text{H}^+ + \\text{HCO}_3^- The resulting bicarbonate ions then diffuse into the plasma for transport to the lungs.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    When the blood reaches the lungs, this reaction is reversed: bicarbonate is converted back into CO\u2082 and water. The CO\u2082 then diffuses into the alveoli and is exhaled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This bicarbonate transport system is crucial for maintaining blood pH homeostasis. It acts as a buffer, regulating the acid-base balance of the blood. Without this mechanism, CO\u2082 would accumulate and acidify the blood, leading to harmful physiological effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In conclusion, bicarbonate ions<\/strong> represent the primary form in which CO\u2082 is carried from tissues to the lungs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    How is the majority of CO2 generated by respiring tissue transported to back to the lungs? The correct answer and explanation is: Correct Answer:The majority of CO\u2082 generated by respiring tissue is transported back to the lungs as bicarbonate ions (HCO\u2083\u207b) in the blood plasma. Explanation (300 Words): Carbon dioxide (CO\u2082) is a waste product […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-quiz-questions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19748"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19749,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19748\/revisions\/19749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gaviki.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}