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Blood and Red Cells

The average adult male has between five and six liters of blood, and the average female has between four and five liters (Applegate, 2000, 226).

29.2 The color of blood is determined by the state of oxygenation of its red cells. When blood leaves the heart, it has been oxygenated in the lungs, and therefore arterial blood is bright red. When blood has passed through the tissues, oxygen has been removed from the red cells, so the blood appears dark red in the veins.

29.3 Nutrients carried in the blood include sugars, amino acids, fatty acids, and minerals (Applegate, 2000, 221). Two gases found in blood are carbon dioxide and oxygen. Three ions found in blood are sodium, potassium, and calcium.

29.4 Plasma consists of about 90 percent water, and the remaining 10 percent is made up of over 100 dissolved organic and inorganic solutes (Applegate, 2000, 221). It has a viscous consistency because of all the solutes it contains, and is straw colored.

29.5 The average lifespan of a red cell is 120 days (Applegate, 2000, 231). The anucleate condition of the red cell does not affect its lifespan per se, but it does mean that red cells cannot reproduce themselves while they are in the circulation. Red cells are produced from stem cells in the bone marrow, and they lose their nucleus before they enter the circulation. They usually enter the circulation as immature red cells known as reticulocytes. Red cells in the circulation are continuously being replaced by new red cells from the bone marrow. In some disease or trauma states, when red blood cell supplies are short, the bone marrow will release nucleated red cells into the circulation.

Bilobed nucleus; red-staining granules in the cytoplasm; cells 10-12 um in diameter

Nucleus with 2 or 3 lobes; non-distinct granules in cytoplasm; cells 12-15 um in diameter

Agranulocytes; large, round nucleus; small cells; cells 6-8 um in diameter

U-shaped or bilobed...

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Blood and Red Cells. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 05:12, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1683155.html