Respiratory SystemThe Mysteries Revealed

Respiratory System Function• The main function of the respiratory system is

allowing gas exchange to the different parts of the body. 

• The two types of respiration are aerobic and anaerobic respiration. Aerobic respiration is the kind of respiration which takes place in the presence of oxygen while anaerobic respiration doesn't require oxygen. The human respiratory system organs carry out aerobic respiration and fulfill the oxygen demands of the body. 

Respiration• Respiration is the process in which oxygen from

the environment enters the body and the carbon dioxide leaves it. 

• The process of respiration takes place in four stages, i.e. ventilation, pulmonary gas exchange, gas transport and peripheral gas exchange. 

• The gas exchange that takes place between pulmonary capillaries and alveoli is termed as pulmonary gas exchange. 

• The process in which the gases are exchanged between the organs / tissues and tissue capillaries is known as peripheral gas exchange.

Respiration System Parts

Organs of the Respiratory System

• Alveoli• Bronchial Tubes• Epiglottis• Larynx• Lungs• Nasal Cavity• Pharynx• Trachea

Alveoli• The alveoli are the final branchings of the respiratory tree

and act as the primary gas exchange units of the lung. The gas-blood barrier between the alveolar space and the pulmonary capillaries is extremely thin, allowing for rapid gas exchange.

• There are two types of alveolar epithelial cells. Type 1 cells have long cytoplasmic extensions which spread out thinly along the alveolar walls and comprise the thin alveolar epithelium. Type 2 cells are more compact and are responsible for producing surfactant, a phospholipid which lines the alveoli and serves to differentially reduce surface tension at different volumes, contributing to alveolar stability.

Alveoli Diagrams

Bronchial Tubes

• The bronchial tubes are large, delicate tubes that carry air into the tiny branches and smaller cells of the lungs after this air has passed through the mouth, nasal passages, and windpipe.

Epiglottis

• The epiglottis is a flap of elastic cartilage tissue covered with a mucus membrane, attached to the entrance of the larynx. It projects obliquely upwards behind the tongue and the hyoid bone, pointing dorsally. The term, like tonsils, is often incorrectly used to refer to the uvula.

• The epiglottis keeps food from going into the trachea, or windpipe, during swallowing. When it gets infected and inflamed, it can obstruct, or close off, the windpipe, which may be fatal unless promptly treated.

Epiglottis Design

Larynx

• The larynx, commonly called the voice box, is an organ in the neck of mammals involved in protecting the trachea and sound production.

• It manipulates pitch and volume. • The larynx houses the vocal folds, which are an essential

component of phonation. The vocal folds are situated just below where the tract of the pharynx splits into the trachea and the esophagus.

Larynx Design

Lungs• The Lungs are paired organs in the chest that perform

respiration. • Each human has two lungs. Each lung is between 10 and 12

inches long. The two lungs are separated by a structure called the mediastinum.

• Your lungs do a vital job. Each day, you take about 23,000 breaths, which bring almost 10,000 quarts of air into your lungs. 

• With each breath, your lungs add fresh oxygen to your blood, which then carries it to your cells. The main function of your lungs is respiration.

Lung Design

Nasal Cavity

• A large air filled space above and behind the nose in the middle of the face.

• The nasal cavity conditions the air to be received by the other areas of the respiratory tract. 

• The air passing through the nasal cavity is warmed or cooled to within 1 degree of body temperature.

Nasal Cavity Diagram

Pharynx

• The human pharynx is the part of the throat situated immediately behind the mouth and nasal cavity, and cranial, or superior, to the esophagus, larynx, and trachea. 

• The human pharynx is conventionally divided into three sections: the nasopharynx, the oropharynx, and the laryngopharynx.

• The pharynx is also important in vocalization.

Pharynx Design

Trachea• In tetrapped anatomy the trachea, or windpipe, is a

tube that connects the pharynx or larynx to the lungs, allowing the passage of air. 

• It is lined with  pseudostratified ciliated columnar

epithelium cells with goblet cells which produce mucus. This mucus lines the cells of the trachea to trap inhaled foreign particles which the cilia then waft upwards towards the larynx and then the pharynx where it can either be swallowed into the stomach or expelled as phlegm.

Trachea Design

Relations Between Organs• Air enters the nostrils which then goes through the nasal

cavity• Air then passes through the nasopharynx,• the oral pharynx,• through the glottis and larynx,• into the trachea,• into the right and left bronchi, which branches and

rebranches into• bronchioles, each of which terminates in a cluster of alveoli.

Relations With Other Organ Systems

• All of the other 5 major systems help the respiratory system work at it's best.

• Digestive - Food goes through the epiglottis, which lets air pass through as well.

• Skeletal - Protects the body, like a shield, and helps protect organs of the respiratory system such as the lungs.

• Circulatory - Helps transport nutrients to the lungs in order to keep it clean and healthy.

• Musculatory - Helps push air into the respiratory system through the contractions and relaxation of the diaphragm, which is a muscle.

• Nervous - Helps respiratory system by notifying you that you are breathing, and have partial control over it.

Ability to Receive Measurements of Respiratory SystemIn order to find the measurements of the organs in the respiratory system, we used the books and Internet access available to us during this project.  The main way we converted or determined the size of each organ in similar units of measurements was by multiplication of the units, such as micrometers to centimeters.  We also compared the picture to pictures found online, or in the books, and drew exactly what was observed.

Resources• LUniversity of Southern Californiaast, . (n.d.). Bronchial tubes. Retrieved from• http://www.cts.usc.edu/zglossary-bronchialtubes.html• Johns Hopkins University , . (1995). Alveoli. Retrieved from• http://oac.med.jhmi.edu/res_phys/Encyclopedia/Alveoli/Alveoli.HTML• Epiglotis. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://web.squ.edu.om/med• Lib/MED_CD/E_CDs/anesthesia/site/content/figures/3039F19.gif• Wikipedia, . (2011, Februrary 1). Lungs. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lung• Wikipedia, Initials. (2011, January 30). Nasal cavity. Retrieved from• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasal_cavity• Wikipedia, . (2011, February 3). Human pharynx. Retrieved from• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_pharynx• Wikipedia, Initials. (2010, December 16). The human respiratory system. Retrieved from• http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/P/Pulmonary.html• National Center for Biotechnology Information, . (2004, December 4). Sonographic

assessment of the• epiglottis. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15576529• Wikipedia, . (2011, January 25). Epiglottis. Retrieved from• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epiglottis

Resources Continued• Wikipedia, Initials. (2011, Februrary 4). Larynx. Retrieved from• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LarynxBIBLIOGRAPHIC CITATION: <br />Wikipedia,

Initials. (2011, Februrary 4). Larynx. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larynx <br />[NOTE: Italicize "Larynx"]<br /><br /><br />PARENTHETICAL CITATION: <br />(Wikipedia, 2011)<br /><br /><br />

• Buzzle, Initials. (2011). Organs of the respiratory system. Retrieved from• http://www.buzzle.com/articles/organs-of-the-respiratory-system.html• The Nemours Foundation, . (2011). Your lungs and the respiratory system.• Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/lungs.html• MamasHealth, . (2011). Organs and glands. Retrieved from• http://www.mamashealth.com/organs/lungs.asp