Textbook Question
What is the primary feedback used by the brain to control breathing?
a. Heart rate
b. Partial pressure of O2
c. Blood pH, which indicates O2 level
d. Blood pH, which indicates CO2 level
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Ch. 22 Gas Exchange
Taylor, Simon, Dickey, Hogan10th EditionCampbell Biology: Concepts & ConnectionsISBN: 9780136538783
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Table of contents
- Ch. 1 Biology: The Study of Scientific Life19
- Ch. 2 The Chemical Basis of Life17
- Ch. 3 The Molecules of Cells21
- Ch. 4 A Tour of the Cell20
- Ch. 5 The Working Cell17
- Ch. 6 How Cells Harvest Chemical Energy18
- Ch. 7 Photosynthesis: Using Light to Make Food15
- Ch. 8 The Cellular Basis of Reproduction and Inheritance22
- Ch. 9 Patterns of Inheritance17
- Ch. 10 Molecular Biology of the Gene13
- Ch. 11 How Genes Are Controlled13
- Ch. 12 DNA Technology and Genomics23
- Ch. 13 How Populations Evolve17
- Ch. 14 The Origin of Species19
- Ch. 15 Tracing Evolutionary History18
- Ch. 16 Microbial Life: Prokaryotes and Protists16
- Ch. 17 The Evolution of Plant and Fungal Diversity15
- Ch. 18 The Evolution of Invertebrate Diversity13
- Ch. 19 The Evolution of Vertebrate Diversity18
- Ch. 20 Unifying Concepts of Animal Structure and Function11
- Ch. 21 Nutrition and Digestion16
- Ch. 22 Gas Exchange16
- Ch. 23 Circulation17
- Ch. 24 The Immune System16
- Ch. 25 Control of Body Temperature and Water Balance20
- Ch. 26 Hormones and the Endocrine System10
- Ch. 27 Reproduction and Embryonic Development12
- Ch. 28 Nervous Systems10
- Ch. 29 The Senses12
- Ch. 30 How Animals Move19
- Ch. 31 Plant Structure, Growth, and Reproduction9
- Ch. 32 Plant Nutrition and Transport12
- Ch. 33 Control Systems in Plants15
- Ch. 34 The Biosphere: An Introduction to Earth's Diverse Environments15
- Ch. 35 Behavioral Adaptations to the Environment12
- Ch. 36 Population Ecology15
- Ch. 37 Communities and Ecosystems14
- Ch. 38 Conservation Biology14
Taylor, Simon, Dickey, Hogan10th EditionCampbell Biology: Concepts & ConnectionsISBN: 9780136538783Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 22, Problem 12
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless gas found in furnace and automobile engine exhaust and cigarette smoke. CO binds to hemoglobin 210 times more tightly than does O2. CO also binds with an electron transport protein and disrupts cellular respiration. Explain why CO is such a deadly gas.
Verified step by step guidance1
Understand the role of hemoglobin: Hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells responsible for transporting oxygen (O₂) from the lungs to tissues and organs. It binds oxygen at its heme sites, which contain iron ions (Fe²⁺).
Analyze CO's binding affinity: Carbon monoxide (CO) binds to the heme sites of hemoglobin with an affinity 210 times greater than oxygen. This means that even small amounts of CO can outcompete oxygen for binding sites, reducing the oxygen-carrying capacity of hemoglobin.
Consider the impact on oxygen transport: When CO occupies hemoglobin, it prevents oxygen from binding and being delivered to tissues. This leads to hypoxia, a condition where cells and tissues are deprived of oxygen, which is critical for energy production and survival.
Examine the disruption of cellular respiration: CO also binds to cytochrome c oxidase, a key enzyme in the electron transport chain of mitochondria. This disrupts the process of oxidative phosphorylation, which is essential for ATP production, further impairing cellular energy metabolism.
Conclude why CO is deadly: The combination of reduced oxygen transport and impaired cellular respiration leads to severe tissue damage, organ failure, and potentially death. This explains why CO is such a dangerous and life-threatening gas.
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Key Concepts
Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.
Hemoglobin and Oxygen Transport
Hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells responsible for transporting oxygen from the lungs to tissues throughout the body. It binds oxygen reversibly, allowing for efficient delivery and release. However, carbon monoxide (CO) binds to hemoglobin with a much higher affinity than oxygen, effectively blocking oxygen transport and leading to tissue hypoxia, which can be fatal.
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Cellular Respiration
Cellular respiration is the process by which cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy (ATP), carbon dioxide, and water. This process occurs in the mitochondria and involves a series of biochemical reactions, including the electron transport chain. CO disrupts this process by binding to electron transport proteins, inhibiting ATP production and leading to energy failure in cells.
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Toxicity and Hypoxia
Toxicity refers to the harmful effects of substances on biological systems. In the case of carbon monoxide, its ability to bind to hemoglobin and disrupt cellular respiration leads to hypoxia, a condition where tissues are deprived of adequate oxygen. This can result in severe physiological effects, including organ damage and death, making CO a highly toxic gas.
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Related Practice
Textbook Question
What are two advantages of breathing air, compared with obtaining dissolved oxygen from water? What is a comparative disadvantage of breathing air?
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Textbook Question
Trace the path of an oxygen molecule in its journey from the air to a muscle cell in your arm, naming all the structures involved along the way.
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Textbook Question
Partial pressure reflects the relative amount of gas in a mixture and is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Llamas are native to the Andes Mountains in South America. The partial pressure of O2 (abbreviated PO₂) in the atmosphere where llamas live is about half of the PO₂ at sea level. As a result, the PO₂ in the lungs of llamas is about 50 mm Hg, whereas that in human lungs at sea level is about 100 mm Hg. A dissociation curve for hemoglobin shows the percentage of saturation (the amount of O2 bound to hemoglobin) at increasing values of PO₂ As you see in the graph below, the dissociation curves for llama and human hemoglobin differ. Compare these two curves and explain how the hemoglobin of llamas is an adaptation to living where the air is 'thin.'
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Textbook Question
Mountain climbers often spend weeks adjusting to the lower partial pressure of oxygen at high altitudes before and during their ascent of high peaks. During that time, their bodies begin to produce more red blood cells. Some runners and cyclists prepare for competition by training at high altitudes or by sleeping in a tent in which PO₂ is kept artificially low. Explain why this training strategy may improve an athlete's performance.
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Textbook Question
One of the many mutant opponents that the movie monster Godzilla contends with is Mothra, a giant mothlike creature with a wingspan of 7–8 m. Science fiction creatures like these can be critiqued on the grounds of biomechanical and physiological principles. Focusing on the principles of gas exchange that you learned about in this chapter, what problems would Mothra face? Why do you think truly giant insects are improbable?
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