Accordingly, why is it called the respiratory system? The lungs and respiratory system allow us to breathe. They bring oxygen into our bodies (called inspiration, or inhalation) and send carbon dioxide out (called expiration, or exhalation). This exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide is called respiration.
What is the definition of respiratory system in biology?
Definition. The respiratory system consists of the set of organs and tissues involved in the uptake of oxygen from the atmosphere and the release of carbon dioxide generated during aerobic respiration. This gas exchange is also called breathing or external respiration.
How does the respiratory system work?
The respiratory system works as a whole to extract the oxygen from the inhaled air and eliminate the carbon dioxide from the body by exhalation. The upper respiratory mainly has an air-conducting function, while the lower respiratory tract serves both the conducting and respiratory functions.
What is the respiratory system made up of?
Respiratory system. These microscopic air sacs have a very rich blood supply, thus bringing the air into close contact with the blood. These air sacs communicate with the external environment via a system of airways, or hollow tubes, of which the largest is the trachea, which branches in the middle of the chest into the two main bronchi.
Where does the respiratory system begin and end?
The respiratory system begins in the nose, continues into the pharynx and larynx, leads to the trachea which branch to create bronchi, and finally down the bronchioles into the lungs. This respiratory tree ends in puffy structures called alveoli that are made of a single layer of squamous cells,...
What does the word respiratory system mean?
(RES-pih-ruh-TOR-ee SIS-tem) The organs that are involved in breathing. These include the nose, throat, larynx, trachea, bronchi, and lungs. Also called respiratory tract. Enlarge.
Why is it called respiration?
Cellular respiration works either in the presence or absence of oxygen. But essentially, the process is called cellular respiration because the cell seems to “respire” in a way that it takes in molecular oxygen (as an electron acceptor) and releases carbon dioxide (as an end product).
Why is the respiratory system a system?
Your respiratory system is the network of organs and tissues that help you breathe. This system helps your body absorb oxygen from the air so your organs can work. It also cleans waste gases, such as carbon dioxide, from your blood.
Who named the respiratory system?
Abstract. Marcello Malpighi (1628-1694) was an Italian scientist who made outstanding contributions in many areas, including the anatomical basis of respiration in amphibia, mammals, and insects and also in the very different fields of embryology and botany.
What is respiration short answer?
1 : the act or process of breathing : the inhaling of oxygen and the exhaling of carbon dioxide. 2 : the process by which cells use oxygen to break down sugar and obtain energy. respiration.
What is respiration for Minecraft?
The respiration in Minecraft is a type of helmet enchantment that increases the time you breathe underwater. We can also apply it to other armors by using some different commands.
How can I remember the respiratory system?
0:596:26First comes the upper respiratory tract. It consists of the nasal cavity. The pharynx and the larynxMoreFirst comes the upper respiratory tract. It consists of the nasal cavity. The pharynx and the larynx. Let's commence with studying the complete nasal cavity. If we zoom into the structure.
Why does it hurt when I take a deep breath?
Pain from taking a deep breath is called pleuritic chest pain or pleurisy. 1 The names come from the membranes lining the lungs, called pleura. The term pleurisy is sometimes used to describe any sharp pain with a deep breath. But it can also be used to describe inflammation of the pleura.
What is respiratory system quizlet?
a system of organs functioning in respiration and in humans consisting especially of the nose, nasal passages, pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, and lungs.
Did you know facts about the respiratory system?
Each of your lungs contains about 300 million balloon-like structures called alveoli, which replace the carbon-dioxide waste in your blood with oxygen. When these structures are filled with air, the lungs become the only organs in the human body that can float on water.
How much do lungs weigh?
Structure of the Respiratory System By age 2 years, when most of the alveolarization process is completed, total lung weight is approximately 170 g. In the normal adult, the lungs weigh approximately 1000 g. Lung volume increases from about 250 mL at birth to 6000 mL in the adult.
What is another name for respiration?
What is another word for respiration?breathingexhalationgaspinsufflationexhalingoutbreathbreathing outblowing outpuffhuff11 more rows
What is the medical name for respiration?
Ventilation refers to the process of moving air in and out of the lungs (respiration).
What is difference between breathing and respiration?
As stated above, breathing is the biological process of inhaling and exhaling of the gases between the cells and the environment. The mechanism of breathing involves various respiratory structures such as the windpipe, lungs and nose. Respiration, on the other hand, is a chemical process that takes place in the cell.
What is respiration in biology?
Respiration is the chemical process by which organic compounds release energy. The compounds change into different ones by exergonic reactions. There are two types of respiration: • aerobic, which requires oxygen and releases lots of energy.
What is the respiratory system?
The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies greatly, depending on the size of the organism, ...
How does the respiratory center work?
The respiratory center does so via motor nerves which activate the diaphragm and other muscles of respiration . The breathing rate increases when the partial pressure of carbon dioxide in the blood increases. This is detected by central blood gas chemoreceptors on the anterior surface of the medulla oblongata.
What is the upper respiratory tract?
The tract is divided into an upper and a lower respiratory tract. The upper tract includes the nose, nasal cavities, sinuses, pharynx and the part of the larynx above the vocal folds. The lower tract (Fig. 2.) includes the lower part of the larynx, the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles and the alveoli .
Which generation of the bronchioles is the air conduit?
The earlier generations (approximately generations 0–16), consisting of the trachea and the bronchi, as well as the larger bronchioles which simply act as air conduits, bringing air to the respiratory bronchioles, alveolar ducts and alveoli (approximately generations 17–23), where gas exchange takes place.
What are the respiratory organs of amphibians?
Both the lungs and the skin serve as respiratory organs in amphibians. The ventilation of the lungs in amphibians relies on positive pressure ventilation. Muscles lower the floor of the oral cavity, enlarging it and drawing in air through the nostrils into the oral cavity. With the nostrils and mouth closed, the floor of the oral cavity is then pushed up, which forces air down the trachea into the lungs. The skin of these animals is highly vascularized and moist, with moisture maintained via secretion of mucus from specialised cells, and is involved in cutaneous respiration. While the lungs are of primary organs for gas exchange between the blood and the environmental air (when out of the water), the skin's unique properties aid rapid gas exchange when amphibians are submerged in oxygen-rich water. Some amphibians have gills, either in the early stages of their development (e.g. tadpoles of frogs ), while others retain them into adulthood (e.g. some salamanders ).
What is the process of releasing clots in the lungs?
The lung vessels contain a fibrinolytic system that dissolves clots that may have arrived in the pulmonary circulation by embolism , often from the deep veins in the legs. They also release a variety of substances that enter the systemic arterial blood, and they remove other substances from the systemic venous blood that reach them via the pulmonary artery. Some prostaglandins are removed from the circulation, while others are synthesized in the lungs and released into the blood when lung tissue is stretched.
Where does ventilation occur in mammals?
Ventilation of the lungs in mammals occurs via the respiratory centers in the medulla oblongata and the pons of the brainstem. These areas form a series of neural pathways which receive information about the partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the arterial blood. This information determines the average rate of ventilation of the alveoli of the lungs, to keep these pressures constant. The respiratory center does so via motor nerves which activate the diaphragm and other muscles of respiration .
What is the respiratory system?
Respiratory system (Systema respiratorum) The respiratory system, also called the pulmonary system, consists of several organs that function as a whole to oxygenate the body through the process of respiration (breathing).
Where does the respiratory tract begin?
The upper respiratory tract begins with the nasal cavity. The nasal cavity opens anteriorly on the face through the two nares, and posteriorly into the nasopharynx through the two choanae. The floor of the nasal cavity is formed by the hard palate, while the roof consists of the cribriform plate of the ethmoid bone posteriorly, and the frontal and nasal bones anteriorly. The nares and anterior portion of the nasal cavity contain sebaceous glands and hair follicles that serve to prevent any larger harmful particles from passing into the nasal cavity.
What is the upper respiratory tract?
The upper respiratory tract refers to the parts of the respiratory system that lie outside the thorax, more specifically above the cricoid cartilage and vocal cords. It includes the nasal cavity, paranasal sinuses, pharynx and the superior portion of the larynx. Most of the upper respiratory tract is lined with the pseudostratified ciliated ...
What is the name of the tube that passes through the nasal cavity?
Pharynx. After passing through the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, the inhaled air exits through the choanae into the pharynx. The pharynx is a funnel-shaped muscular tube that contains three parts; the nasopharynx, oropharynx and laryngopharynx.
What is the larynx?
The larynx is a complex hollow structure found anterior to the esophagus. It is supported by a cartilaginous skeleton connected by membranes, ligaments and associated muscles.
Which bronchial artery passes inferolaterally to enter the hilum of the left lung?
The trachea bifurcates at the level of the sternal angle (T5) into the left and right main bronchi, one for each lung. The left main bronchus passes inferolaterally to enter the hilum of the left lung. On its course, it passes inferior to the arch of the aorta and anterior to the esophagus and thoracic aorta.
What are the bones that make up the walls of the nasal cavity?
Several bones that form the walls of the nasal cavity contain air-filled spaces called the paranasal sinuses, which are named after their associated bones; maxillary, frontal, sphenoidal and ethmoidal sinuses.
What is the respiratory system?
The respiratory system consists of the set of organs and tissues involved in the uptake of oxygen from the atmosphere and the release of carbon dioxide generated during aerobic respiration. This gas exchange is also called breathing or external respiration.
Why is the respiratory tract important?
They have an important role in the immune system since the respiratory tract is one of the organ systems with intensive and repeated interaction with the environment ( the other is the digestive system ).
What is the structure of the respiratory tree?
This respiratory tree ends in puffy structures called alveoli that are made of a single layer of squamous cells, surrounded by a network of capillaries. Gas exchange occurs within alveoli. Since external respiration in many vertebrates involves lungs, it is also called pulmonary ventilation.
Which organ system is responsible for gas exchange?
In humans and other mammals, there is an extensive, highly vascularized organ system specialized for gas exchange. The respiratory system begins in the nose, continues into the pharynx and larynx, leads to the trachea which branch to create bronchi, and finally down the bronchioles into the lungs.
How do the cells of the respiratory tract help the lungs?
Other Functions. The cells of the respiratory tract can help in removing clots in pulmonary blood vessels. They also activate hormones and either remove or add to the substances circulating in the blood. They can make incoming air warm and moist, in order to protect the delicate cells of the inner respiratory passages.
What is the function of the nose?
The nose plays an important role in respiration, but the olfactory nerves and their associated structures are also involved in sensing smell. This has functions ranging from digestion (the cephalic phase of digestion) to hunting, recognition, and mating. Most animals have some sort of olfactory senses, usually in the form of nerves within the respiratory system. Sharks, for instance, can smell blood in the water up to several miles away. Terrestrial predators, like wolves, also use their olfactory senses to detect prey.
Which system makes sounds?
In humans and other mammals, the respiratory system is integral creating sounds such as those used for speech. Structures of the upper respiratory tract, especially the larynx, are involved in the production of sound and can modulate pitch, volume, and clarity. Making noises is called phonation.
What is the respiratory system?
Regina Bailey. Updated November 25, 2019. The respiratory system is composed of a group of muscles, blood vessels, and organs that enable us to breathe. The primary function of this system is to provide body tissues and cells with life-giving oxygen while expelling carbon dioxide. These gases are transported via the blood to sites ...
What are the three main structures of the respiratory system?
These structures are typically grouped into three main categories: air passages, pulmonary vessels, and respiratory muscles.
How does air travel through the lungs?
Air is brought into the lungs by actions of respiratory muscles. The diaphragm is shaped like a dome and is at its maximum height when it is relaxed. This shape reduces the volume in the chest cavity. As the diaphragm contracts, the diaphragm moves downward and the intercostal muscles move outward.
What are the structures of the lower respiratory tract?
Lower respiratory tract structures include the trachea, bronchial tubes, and lungs. Bronchitis (inflammation of the bronchial tubes), pneumonia (inflammation of the lung alveoli), tuberculosis, and influenza are types of lower respiratory tract infections.
Why is breathing under strict control?
All facets of breathing are under strict control as the respiratory system must be able to adapt to changing needs. Respiratory system infections can be common since its component structures are exposed to the environment. Bacteria and viruses can infect the respiratory system and cause disease.
Which vessels transport oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the lungs?
Alveoli: bronchiole terminal sacs that are surrounded by capillaries and are the respiratory surfaces of the lungs. Pulmonary arteries: blood vessels that transport oxygen-depleted blood from the heart to the lungs. Pulmonary veins: blood vessels that transport oxygen-rich blood from the lungs back to the heart.
What is the process of breathing?
Breathing is a complex physiological process that is performed by respiratory system structures. There are a number of facets involved in breathing. Air must be able to flow into and out of the lungs. Gases must be able to be exchanged between the air and blood, as well as between the blood and body cells.
What are the problems of the respiratory system?
Some common problems of the respiratory system include: 1 asthma – wheezing and breathlessness caused by a narrowing of the airways 2 bronchitis – inflammation of the lung’s larger airways 3 emphysema – disease of the alveoli (air sacs) of the lungs 4 hay fever – an allergic reaction to pollen, dust or other irritants 5 influenza – caused by viruses 6 laryngitis – inflammation of the voice box (larynx) 7 pneumonia – infection of the lung.
How does breathing in air help?
Breathing in through the nose warms and humidifies the air that is breathed in. Nose hairs help to trap any particles of dust. The warmed air enters the lungs through the windpipe, or trachea. The trachea is a hollow tube bolstered by rings of cartilage to prevent it from collapsing.
What are the lungs made of?
The lungs are inside the chest, protected by the ribcage and wrapped in a membrane called the pleura. The lungs look like giant sponges. They are filled with thousands of tubes, branching smaller and smaller. The smallest components of all are the air sacs, called 'alveoli'. Each one has a fine mesh of capillaries. This is where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.
Where does carbon dioxide enter the blood?
Blood containing carbon dioxide enters the capillaries lining the alveoli. The gas moves from the blood across a thin film of moisture and into the air sac. The carbon dioxide is then breathed out. On inhalation, oxygen is drawn down into the alveoli where it passes into the blood using the same film of moisture.
Overview
The respiratory system (also respiratory apparatus, ventilatory system) is a biological system consisting of specific organs and structures used for gas exchange in animals and plants. The anatomy and physiology that make this happen varies greatly, depending on the size of the organism, the environment in which it lives and its evolutionary history. In land animals the respiratory surface is internalized as linings of the lungs. Gas exchange in the lungs occurs in milli…
Mammals
In humans and other mammals, the anatomy of a typical respiratory system is the respiratory tract. The tract is divided into an upper and a lower respiratory tract. The upper tract includes the nose, nasal cavities, sinuses, pharynx and the part of the larynx above the vocal folds. The lower tract (Fig. 2.) includes the lower part of the larynx, the trachea, bronchi, bronchioles and the alveoli.
The branching airways of the lower tract are often described as the respiratory tree or tracheobro…
Exceptional mammals
Horses are obligate nasal breathers which means that they are different from many other mammals because they do not have the option of breathing through their mouths and must take in air through their noses.
The elephant is the only mammal known to have no pleural space. Rather, the parietal and visceral pleura are both composed of dense connective tissue and joined to each other via loose connecti…
Birds
The respiratory system of birds differs significantly from that found in mammals. Firstly, they have rigid lungs which do not expand and contract during the breathing cycle. Instead an extensive system of air sacs (Fig. 15) distributed throughout their bodies act as the bellows drawing environmental air into the sacs, and expelling the spent air after it has passed through the lungs (Fig. 18). Birds also do not have diaphragms or pleural cavities.
Reptiles
The anatomical structure of the lungs is less complex in reptiles than in mammals, with reptiles lacking the very extensive airway tree structure found in mammalian lungs. Gas exchange in reptiles still occurs in alveoli however. Reptiles do not possess a diaphragm. Thus, breathing occurs via a change in the volume of the body cavity which is controlled by contraction of intercostal muscles in all reptiles except turtles. In turtles, contraction of specific pairs of flank m…
Amphibians
Both the lungs and the skin serve as respiratory organs in amphibians. The ventilation of the lungs in amphibians relies on positive pressure ventilation. Muscles lower the floor of the oral cavity, enlarging it and drawing in air through the nostrils into the oral cavity. With the nostrils and mouth closed, the floor of the oral cavity is then pushed up, which forces air down the trachea into the lungs. The skin of these animals is highly vascularized and moist, with moisture maintained via …
Fish
Oxygen is poorly soluble in water. Fully aerated fresh water therefore contains only 8–10 ml O2/liter compared to the O2 concentration of 210 ml/liter in the air at sea level. Furthermore, the coefficient of diffusion (i.e. the rate at which a substances diffuses from a region of high concentration to one of low concentration, under standard conditions) of the respiratory gases is typically 10,000 faster in air than in water. Thus oxygen, for instance, has a diffusion coefficient …
Invertebrates
Some species of crab use a respiratory organ called a branchiostegal lung. Its gill-like structure increases the surface area for gas exchange which is more suited to taking oxygen from the air than from water. Some of the smallest spiders and mites can breathe simply by exchanging gas through the surface of the body. Larger spiders, scorpions and other arthropods use a primitive book lung.
Function
Other animals
- In fish, this gas exchange occurs through gills. Some invertebrates, like cockroaches, have simple respiratory systems made of interconnecting tubules directly delivering oxygen to tissues. In humans and other mammals, there is an extensive, highly vascularized organ system specialized for gas exchange.
Significance
- Finally, epithelial cells of the lung also produce surfactant that makes the process of inhalation and exhalation easier. In fact, adequate production of surfactant by fetal lung cells is an important prerequisite for viability in pre-term births.
Classification
- The airways can be divided into the conducting and respiratory zones. The conducting zone begins at the nose and ends at smaller bronchioles, and these passages carry air towards the inner recesses of the lungs. The respiratory zone contains the terminal bronchioles and the alveoli the sites where gas exchange occurs.
Structure
- The trachea splits to form two primary bronchi, called the left and right bronchi. Each of these leads towards a lung and then undergoes repeated branching to produce secondary, tertiary bronchi, and bronchioles, with successively smaller diameters. When the bronchioles are less than a millimeter in diameter, they are called terminal bronchioles, whose purpose is to end in vascul…
Mechanism
- The alveoli directly contact tiny capillaries from the circulatory system and are able to pass small gas molecules and some waste products across the cell membranes separating them. Oxygen is added to the blood, while carbon dioxide is taken into the alveoli. When the breath is released, this carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. The oxygen will make its way via the circulatory …
Clinical significance
- Diseases of the respiratory tract can arise due to obstruction to the airway, constriction of the passages, or the loss of the extensive surface area of alveoli for gas exchange. There could also be difficulties with the capillaries surrounding these alveoli, either due to clots or due to altered cardiac function. These illnesses could be chronic conditions or temporary infections. They coul…
Causes
- The common cold, appropriately named for its ubiquitous nature is caused by a large number of different viruses, with rhinoviruses being the most varied and common cause for this complaint. It is usually an infection of the upper respiratory tract, though it can occasionally spread towards the ears, or the lower respiratory structures as well. The infection is transmitted through direct cont…
Prevention
- This is particularly difficult to prevent since a person is infectious before they begin to show symptoms. The viruses usually establish contact with the cells of the nose, which then produce a clear liquid to trap these microorganisms and expel them from the body. This is followed by sneezing and coughing, especially if the virus travels deeper into the airway. Thick, yellow or gre…
Overview
- Lung cancer is the development of a malignant tumor in the lungs, associated with uncontrolled cell growth within the tissues and the metastasis of these cells to other organs within the body. Smoking, especially when begun at an earlier age, is the highest risk factor for developing lung cancer. Passive smoking is often equally dangerous. In recent history, King George VI died of co…