Hypoxia and Medicine

Biology essay on red blood cell graph?

I'm supposed to answer the following questions on this graph/subject, (I typed out everything it says.) and I dont understand it.. I'm homeschooled so I just cant ask a teacher and no one I know knows anything about it.. and I'm just so confused and stressed out (I get easily stressed, and then never shut up..) Red blood cells are able to transport oxygen throughout the body because oxygen binds to hemoglobin molecules within the blood cells. To learn how the concentration of oxygen in tissues affects the binding of oxygen to the hemoglobin molecule, researchers devised the following study. Samples of human blood were taken from various tissues. In each sample, the researchers measured the amount of dissolved oxygen in the tissue and isolated the hemoglobin. The amount of isolated hemoglobin was measured and then separated to determine how much of the hemoglobin had all of its binding sites filled with oxygen. The amount of saturate hemoglobin was compared with the total amount of hemoglobin to yield the percentage of hemoglobin saturation. Some results of the study are shown in the graph. Use the graph to answer the questions that follow. a. If the concentration of oxygen in the lung tissues is about 9%, what is the hemoglobin saturation of the red blood cells in the lungs? b. If the concentration of oxygen in a sample of body tissue is 4%, what is the hemoglobin saturation of the red blood cells in the sample? c. What happens to the hemoglobin saturation of the red blood cells as the cells move to tissues that have lower oxygen concentrations? d. What must happen to the oxygen bound to the hemoglobin as the red blood cells move to tissues with lower oxygen concentration? Heres a pic of the graph:http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/8748/picture024jm7.jpg

Public Comments

1. the answer is E.Not Given
2. Hello, Don't be broody, BroodyMe. Look @the graph, Honey. The question refers to a concentration gradient (hyper/hypo-tonic solutions). So: A) 90-95%: directly from graph. B) 40%: directly from graph. C) As the RBCs move through areas w/lower O2 concentrations. More O2 is pulled from the RBCs, into the surrounding tissues. This brings the O2% saturation up. Becuase the tissues there were more needy. They took more O2. D) Same as answer "C." Picture a piece of paper w/a line going down the middle, dividing it in half. Now, put 40 dots on one side, & 20 dots on the other side. Each dot represents one percentage point of Oxygen (O2). W/a permeable membrane, the differences in concentration will even out. So, O2 from the higher-concentration area, will migrate to the lower concentration area, until the concentrations are equal. 40%/20% will even out to 30%/30%. The same is happening w/the RBCs in your graph. Get it?
3. This is just using the graph to find the answers. Follow the numbers on the bottom or side of the graph and match them up with the line on the chart. Using the line on the chart find the corresponding number on the bottom/side of the chart. a. If O2 = 9%; then Hb = 90% saturation b. If O2 = 4%; then Hb = 40% c. Hemoglobin concentration will fall as the O2 saturation falls d. The Oxygen on the hemoglobin will move into the body tissue.