The respiratory system consists of tubes that filter incoming air and transport it into the alveoli where gases are exchanged

Authors Avatar by twan (student)

                                                     Respiratory System

 _        The respiratory system consists of tubes that filter incoming air and transport it into the  alveoli where gases are exchanged.The entire process of exchanging gases between the atmosphere and body cells is called respiration and consists of the following: ventilation, gas exchange between blood and lungs, gas transport in the bloodstream, gas exchange between the blood and body cells, and cellular respiration. The respiratory system contains organs such as the nose, nasal cavity, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchial tree and lungs which provides an important role in the proper function of the human body and respiratory system.

       

            The organs of the respiratory system can be divided into two groups; the upper respiratory tract includes the nose, nasal cavity, sinuses, and pharynx, and the lower respiratory area larynx, trachea, bronchial tree, and lungs. The nose is  supported by bone and cartilage, provides an entrance for air in which air is filtered by hairs inside the nostrils. The nasal cavity is a space posterior to the nose that is divided by the nasal septum. Nasal conchae divide the cavity into passageways that are lined with mucous membrane, and help increase the surface area available to warm and filter incoming air and mucus plays a role also. Paranasal Sinuses are air-filled spaces with thin the maxillary, frontal, ethmoid, and sphenoid bones of the skull. These spaces open to the nasal cavity and are lined with mucus membrane that is continuous with that lining the nasal cavity.  The sinuses reduce the weight of the skull and serve as a chamber to affect the quality of the voice. The pharynx is a common passageway for air and food. The pharynx aids in producing sounds for speech. The larynx is an airway superior to the trachea and inferior to the pharynx.It helps keep particles from entering the trachea and also houses the vocal cords. The larynx is composed of a framework of muscles and cartilage bound by elastic tissue. Inside the larynx, two pairs of folds of muscle and connective tissue covered with mucous membrane make up the vocal cords.  During normal breathing, the vocal cords are relaxed. Trachea which extends downward anterior to the esophagus and into the thoracic cavity, where it splits into right and left bronchi. The inner wall of the trachea is lined with ciliated mucous membrane with many goblet cells that serve to trap incoming particles.

 The bronchial tree consists of branched tubes leading from the trachea to the alveoli. The bronchial tree begins with the two primary bronchi, each leading to a lung. The branches  of the bronchial tree from the trachea are right and left primary bronchi; these further subdivide until bronchioles give rise to alveolar ducts which terminate in alveoli. The Carina is lined up with sensitive mucous membrane;  any tickling or irritation leads to violent coughing. The right primary bronchus is shorter, wider, and more upright than the left; inhaled objects like food when chocking are mostly likely to take that path. Larger Bronchi, like the trachea are made with cartilage and lined with ciliated mucus. Ciliated mucus propels foreign particles up the airways and eventually out the mouth or down the esophagus into the stomach. During exercise, hormones relax dilate these small airways/bronchioles, allowing more air to flow through then. Asthma attacks and allergic reactions can close off the bronchioles, taking the body's air supply. It is through the thin epithelial cells of the alveoli that gas exchange between the blood and air occurs.

Join now!

Veins and arteries are covered the entire bronchial tree. Veins and arteries feed into and out of the lungs. The Respiratory and the Circulatory system work together. Pulmonary Arteries from the right side of the lungs pump oxygen- poor blood into the lungs where it flows through branching blood vessels along the bronchi until it reaches the capillaries that cover the alveoli. (Pulmonary arteries leads to the lungs.) Carbon dioxide then diffuses from the capillaries the alveoli into the capillaries into the alveoli as oxygen diffuses from the alveoli into the capillaries. The oxygenated blood returns to the left ...

This is a preview of the whole essay