Respiratory Surfaces | Large animals cannot maintain gas exchange by diffusion across their outer surface.

They developed a variety of respiratory surfaces that all increase the surface area for exchange, thus allowing for larger bodies. A respiratory surface is covered with thin, moist epithelial cells that allow oxygen and carbon dioxide to exchange. Those gases can only cross cell membranes when they are dissolved in water or an aqueous solution, thus respiratory surfaces must be moist. Methods of Respiration Sponges and jellyfish lack specialized organs for gas exchange and take in gases directly from the surrounding water. Flatworms and annelids use their outer surfaces as gas exchange surfaces. Arthropods, annelids, and fish use gills; terrestrial vertebrates utilize internal lungs. Gas exchange systems in several animals. Images from Purves et al., Life: The Science of Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman (www.whfreeman.com), used with permission. The Body Surface Flatworms and annelids use their outer surfaces as gas exchange surfaces. Earthworms have a series of thin-walled blood vessels known as capillaries. Gas exchange occurs at capillaries located throughout the body as well as those in the respiratory surface. Amphibians use their skin as a respiratory surface. Frogs eliminate carbon dioxide 2.5 times as fast through their skin as they do through their lungs. Eels (a fish) obtain 60% of their oxygen through their skin. Humans exchange only 1% of their carbon dioxide through their skin. Constraints of water loss dictate that terrestrial animals must develop more efficient lungs. Gills Gills greatly increase the surface area for gas exchange. They occur in a variety of animal groups including arthropods (including some terrestrial crustaceans), annelids, fish, and amphibians. Gills typically are convoluted outgrowths containing blood vessels covered by a thin epithelial layer. Typically gills are organized into a series of plates and may be internal (as in crabs and fish) or external to the body (as in some amphibians). Gills are very efficient at removing oxygen from water: there is only 1/20 the amount of oxygen present in water as in the same volume of air. Water flows over gills in one direction while blood flows in the opposite direction through gill capillaries. This countercurrent flow maximizes oxygen transfer.

Countercurrent flow in a fish. Images from Purves et al., Life: The Science of Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman (www.whfreeman.com), used with permission. Tracheal Systems Many terrestrial animals have their respiratory surfaces inside the body and connected to the outside by a series of tubes.Tracheae are these tubes that carry air directly to cells for gas exchange. Spiracles are openings at the body surface that lead to tracheae that branch into smaller tubes known as tracheoles. Body movements or contractions speed up the rate of diffusion of gases from tracheae into body cells. However, tracheae will not function well in animals whose body is longer than 5 cm. Respiratory system in an insect. Image from Purves et al., Life: The Science of Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman (www.whfreeman.com), used with permission. Lungs Lungs are ingrowths of the body wall and connect to the outside by as series of tubes and small openings. Lung breathing probably evolved about 400 million years ago. Lungs are not entirely the sole property of vertebrates, some terrestrial snails have a gas exchange structures similar to those in frogs. Lungs in a bird (top) and amphibian (bottom). Images from Purves et al., Life: The Science of Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman (www.whfreeman.com), used with permission. Respiratory System Principles | Movement of an oxygen-containing medium so it contacts a moist membrane overlying blood vessels. 1. 2. 3. 4. Diffusion of oxygen from the medium into the blood. Transport of oxygen to the tissues and cells of the body. Diffusion of oxygen from the blood into cells. Carbon dioxide follows a reverse path.

Earthworms skin
Earthworms are more than just fish bait. They are the main contributors to enriching and improving soil for plants, animals and even humans. Earthworms create tunnels in the soil by burrowing, which aerates the soil to allow air, water and nutrients to reach deep within the soil. Earthworms eat the soil which has organic matter such as decaying vegetation or leaves. Plants cannot use this organic matter directly. After organic matter is digested, the earthworm releases waste from their bodies called castings. Castings contain many nutrients that the plant can use. Some people even use earthworm castings as garden fertilizer.

1. Segmented Body Earthworms are classified in the phylum Annelida or Annelids. Annelida in Latin means, little rings. The body of the earthworm is segmented which looks like many little rings joined or fused together. The earthworm is made of about 100-150 segments. The segmented body parts provide important structural functions. Segmentation can help the earthworm move. Each segment or section has muscles and bristles called setae. The bristles or setae help anchor and control the worm when moving through soil. The bristles hold a section of the worm firmly into the ground while the other part of the body protrudes forward. The earthworm uses segments to either contract or relax independently to cause the body to lengthen in one area or contract in other areas. Segmentation helps the worm to be flexible and strong in its movement. If each segment moved together without being independent, the earthworm would be stationary. 2. Earthworms do not have lungs. They breathe through their skin. Oxygen and carbon dioxide pass through the earthworms skin by diffusion. For diffusion to occur, the earthworms skin must be kept moist. Body fluid and mucous is released to keep its skin moist. Earthworms therefore, need to be in damp or moist soil. This is one reason why they usually surface at night when it is possibly cooler and the evaporating potential of the air is low. (www.amonline.net.au/factsheets/earthworms.htm) Earthworms have developed the ability to detect light even though they cannot see. They have tissue located at the earthworms head that is sensitive to light. These tissues enable an earthworm to detect light and not surface during the daytime where they could be affected by the sun.
3.

The first body segment is called theperistomium. The peristomium contains the mouth.

Adult (sexually mature) earthworms have a distinct swelling called a clitellum. It is located about one-third of the way down the earthworm. The clitellum is often white or orange in colour. It produces most of the material secreted to form earthworm cocoons. The clitellum forms a band that can be flared, non-flared, saddle-shaped, or annular. It is generally found between segments 26 and 33.

The clitellum is only found on adult worms. Young or juvenile worms do not have a clitellum. The clitellum of each species of earthworm has a distinct colour, size, and shape. Another key structure found on the clitellum is thetubercula pubertatis. The diagram shows the shape and structure of the clitellum. They may have any combination of shapes.

Tubercula Pubertatis (TP)

The tubercula pubertatis (TP) is another structure used to identify earthworms. The TP are glandular swellings located on both sides of the clitellum. They can assume a variety of shapes such as long and narrow, triangular, or sucker-like. The shape and location of the tubercula pubertatis (TP) on the clitellum are key features used to identify mature earthworms.]

Genital Tumescences (GT)

The genital tumescences (GT) are areas of modified epidermis (skin) that do not have distinct boundaries. These are openings through which follicles of genital setae open. The pattern and location of the GT are important clues to identifying different species of earthworms.]

Anterior

Locate the clitellum of a mature earthworm. The shorter region to one side of the clitellum is the anterior or head-end of the animal. This end of the worm is usually more pointed than the posterior end of the animal. The prostomium is the first segment at the anterior end of the animal.

Frogs Skin
A frog's skin is protective, has a respiratory function, can absorb water and helps control body temperature. It has many glands, particularly on the head and back, which often exude distasteful and toxic substances. The secretion is often sticky and helps keep the skin moist, protects against the entry of moulds and bacteria and make the animal slippery and more able to escape from predators.[44] The skin is shed every few weeks. It usually splits down the middle of the back and across the belly, and the frog pulls its arms and legs free. The sloughed skin is then worked towards the head where it is quickly eaten.[45] Being cold-blooded, frogs have to adopt suitable behaviour patterns to regulate their temperature. To warm up they can move into the sun or onto a warm surface; if they overheat they can move into the shade or adopt a stance that exposes the minimum area of skin to the air. This posture is also used to prevent water loss and involves the frog squatting close to the substrate with its hands and feet tucked under its chin and body.[46] The colour of a frog's skin is used for thermo-regulation. In cool damp conditions the colour will be darker than on a hot dry day. The grey foam-nest tree frog(Chiromantis xerampelina) is even able to turn white to minimize the chance of overheating.[47] Many frogs are able to absorb water and oxygen directly through the skin, especially around the pelvic area, but the permeability of a frog's skin can also result in water loss. Glands located all over the body exude mucus which helps keep the skin moist and reduces evaporation. Some glands on the hands and chest of males are specialized to produce sticky secretions to aid inamplexus. Similar glands in tree frogs produce a glue-like substance on the adhesive discs of the feet. Some arboreal frogs reduce water loss by having a waterproof layer of skin and several South American species coat their skin with a waxy secretion. Others frogs have adopted behaviours to conserve water, including becoming nocturnal and resting in a water-conserving position. Some frogs may also rest in large groups with each frog pressed against its neighbours. This reduces the amount of skin exposed to the air or a dry surface, and thus reduces water loss.[46] TheWoodhouse's toad (Bufo woodhousii), if given access to water after confinement in a dry location, sits in the shallows to rehydrate.[48] The male hairy frog (Trichobatrachus robustus) has dermal papillae projecting from its lower back and thighs giving it a bristly appearance. They contain blood vessels and are thought to increase the area of the skin available for respiration. [49] Camouflage is a common defensive mechanism in frogs. Most camouflaged frogs are nocturnal; during the day, they seek out a position where they can blend into the background and remain undetected. Some frogs have the ability to change colour, but this is usually restricted to a small range of colours. For example, the White's tree frog (Litoria caerulea) varies between pale green and dull brown according to the temperature, and the Pacific tree frog (Pseudacris regilla) has green and brown morphs, plain or spotted, and changes colour depending on the time of year and general background colour.[50] Features such as warts and skin folds are usually found on ground-dwelling frogs, where a smooth skin would not provide such effective camouflage. Certain frogs change colour between night and day, as light and moisture stimulate the pigment cells and cause them to expand or contract.

When frogs left the ocean, many parts of their anatomy changed. One of the parts of their bodies that changed the most was their skin. Their skin contains two parts: the epidermis (outer skin) and the dermis (inner skin). The epidermis contains many layers of cells, and is covered by an outer layer of ,

dead cells that protects the other cells and prevents moisture loss which is called the stratum corneum. This layer of dead cells is one of the frog's adaptations to land. Frogs and toads shed this skin at various times and a new layer forms. The dermis is a thinner layer that serves as a respiratory organ. The pigment that colors the frog's skin is usually found in this layer. Depending on the species, a frog may have poison glands in its skin. A frog's skin does not have scales. The frog's digestive system starts in the mouth with its tongue. For the most part, frog tongues art attached near the back of the jaw and folded on the base of the mouth with the tip of the tongue pointing back toward its throat. Their tongues can be flipped out very rapidly and accurately in order to catch an insect or other tasty treat (mucus glands in the mouth produce a sticky substance that helps to catch prey). Some toads are toothless, but most frogs do have tooth-like structures which are attached to the jaw and aid in breaking up the food so that it can be digested. The food then goes down their short esophagus into the stomach, where the food is digested. The waste goes into the coiled, winding intestines where it can be later removed.
1. Estimates of the magnitudes of the unstirred regions associated with isolated frog skin in sulphate Ringer's solution have been made under different stirring conditions. 2. The method of investigation was an analysis of the time course of the p.d. transients which occurred when external sodium concentration and internal potassium concentration changes were made in the bathing solution. 3. Making an arbitrary but reasonable assumption about the diffusional coefficient of Na2SO4 in the outer unstirred region, the magnitudes of the outer unstirred layers were found to lie within the ranges 40-60 , 30-50 and 30-40 under stirring conditions of 120, 300 and 500 rev/min, respectively. 4. Making an arbitrary but reasonable assumption about the diffusion coefficient of K2SO4 in the inner unstirred region, the magnitudes of the inner unstirred layers were found to lie within the ranges 150-230 , 120-200 and 100-170 under stirring conditions of 120, 300 and 500 rev/min, respectively.

Vertebrate Lungs Terrestrial vertebrates (amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals) use a pair of lungs to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide between their tissues and the air.
Frog Lungs The frog's lungs are a pair of thin-walled sacs connected to the mouth through an opening, the glottis. The surface area of the lungs is increased by inner partitions which are richly supplied with blood vessels. The frog inflates its lungs by

filling its mouth with air then closing its mouth closing the internal openings to its nostrils opening its glottis raising the floor of its mouth thus forcing air into the lungs.

The frog's skin serves as a supplementary organ of gas exchange. However, it must remain moist to do this, which is one reason that frogs, like other amphibians, live in moist places. The frog's circulatory system, which brings oxygen-depleted blood to its lungs (and skin) and takes oxygen-enriched blood away is described in a separate page. Link to it.
Reptile Lungs

The skin of reptiles is dry and scaly, so they can live in arid locations (although many do not). However, they cannot use their skin as an organ of gas exchange. Reptiles depend entirely on their lungs for this. Their lungs are considerably more efficient than those of amphibians.

They have a much greater surface area for the exchange of gases. They are inflated and deflated by the bellowslike expansion and contraction of the rib cage.

While fresh air flows in and stale air out of the lizard's lungs, another reptile, the American alligator, uses a more efficient mechanism similar to that described below in birds.) The lizard's circulatory system, which brings oxygen-depleted blood to its lungs and takes oxygen-enriched blood away is described in a separate page. Link to it.
Bird Lungs

Unlike reptiles, birds are homeothermic ("warm blooded"), maintaining a constant body temperature (usually around 40C) despite wide fluctuations in the temperature of their surroundings. They maintain their body temperature with the heat produced by muscular activity. This depends, in turn, on a high rate of cellular respiration. So the demands on the gas-exchange efficiency of the lungs of a small, active bird are great. Although the ventilation of bird lungs is similar to that of reptiles, their effectiveness is increased by the presence of air sacs. Although no gas exchange occurs in the air sacs, their arrangement increases the efficiency of lung ventilation by enabling fresh air to pass in one direction through the lungs duringboth inhalation and exhalation. The air sacs also aid in reducing the density of the body by substituting air for tissue or fluid in many places. Even some of the bird's bones are penetrated by air sacs.
Mammalian Lungs Ventilation of mammalian lungs is assisted by the diaphragm - a muscular partition that divides the thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity.

Fish gill
Most fish exchange gases using gills on either side of the pharynx (throat). Gills consist of threadlike structures called filaments. Each filament contains a capillary network that provides a large surface area for exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide. Fish exchange gases by pulling oxygen-rich water through their mouths and pumping it over their gills. In some fish, capillary blood flows in the opposite direction to the water, causing countercurrent exchange. The gills push the oxygen-poor water out through openings in the sides of the pharynx. Some fish, like sharks and lampreys, possess multiple gill openings. However, bony fish have a single gill opening on each side. This opening is hidden beneath a protective bony cover called an operculum. Juvenile bichirs have external gills, a very primitive feature that they share with larval amphibians.

Breathing with gills

Air breathing fish can be divided into obligate air breathers and facultative air breathers. Obligate air breathers, such as the African lungfish, are obligated to breathe air periodically or they suffocate. Facultative air breathers, such as the catfish Hypostomus plecostomus, only breathe air if they need to and can otherwise rely on their gills for oxygen. Most air breathing fish are facultative air breathers that avoid the energetic cost of rising to the surface and the fitness cost of exposure to surface [1] predators. All basal vertebrates breathe with gills. The gills are carried right behind the head, bordering the posterior margins of a series of openings from theesophagus to the exterior. Each gill is supported by [2] a cartilagenous or bony gill arch. The gills of vertebrates typically develop in the walls of thepharynx, along a series of gill slits opening to the exterior. Most species employ a countercurrent exchange system to enhance the diffusion of substances in and out of the gill, with blood and water flowing in opposite directions to each other. The gills are composed of comb-like filaments, the gill lamellae, which help increase their surface area [3] for oxygen exchange. When a fish breathes, it draws in a mouthful of water at regular intervals. Then it draws the sides of its throat together, forcing the water through the gill openings, so that it passes over the gills to the outside. The bony fish have three pairs of arches, cartilaginous fish have five to seven pairs, while the primitive jawless fishhave seven. The vertebrate ancestor no doubt had [4] more arches, as some of their chordate relatives have more than 50 pairs of gills. Gills usually consist of thin filaments of tissue, branches, or slender tufted processes that have a highly folded surface to increase surface area. The high surface area is crucial to the gas exchange of aquatic organisms as water contains only a small fraction of the dissolved oxygen that air does. Acubic meter of air contains about 250 grams of oxygen at STP. The concentration of oxygen in water 3 is lower than air and it diffuses more slowly. In a litre of freshwater the oxygen content is 8 cm per [5] litre compared to 210 in the same volume of air. Water is 777 times more dense than air and is 100 [5] [5] times more viscous. Oxygen has a diffusion rate in air 10,000 times greater than in water. The use [5] of sac-like lungs to remove oxygen from water would not be efficient enough to sustain life. Rather than using lungs "Gaseous exchange takes place across the surface of highly vascularised gills over which a one-way current of water is kept flowing by a specialised pumping mechanism. The density of the water prevents the gills from collapsing and lying on top of each other, which is what happens [5] when a fish is taken out of water." Higher vertebrates do not develop gills, the gill arches form during fetal development, and lay the basis of essential structures such as jaws, the thyroid gland, the larynx, the columella (corresponding [4] to the stapes in mammals) and in mammals the malleus and incus. Fish gill slits may be the

evolutionary ancestors of the tonsils, thymus gland, and Eustachian tubes, as well as many other structures derived from the embryonic branchial pouches. In bony fish, the gills lie in a branchial chamber covered by a bony operculum (branchia is an Ancient Greek word for gills). The great majority of bony fish species have five pairs of gills, although a few have lost some over the course of evolution. The operculum can be important in adjusting the pressure of water inside of the pharynx to allow proper ventilation of the gills, so that bony fish do not have to rely on ram ventilation (and hence near constant motion) to breathe. Valves inside the mouth [4] keep the water from escaping. The gill arches of bony fish typically have no septum, so that the gills alone project from the arch, supported by individual gill rays. Some species retaingill rakers. Though all but the most primitive bony fish lack a spiracle, the pseudobranch associated with it often remains, being located at the base of the operculum. This is, however, often greatly reduced, consisting of a small mass of cells [4] without any remaining gill-like structure. Marine teleosts also use gills to excrete electrolytes. The gills' large surface area tends to create a problem for fish that seek to regulate the osmolarityof their internal fluids. Saltwater is less dilute than these internal fluids, so saltwater fish lose large quantities of water osmotically through their gills. To regain the water, they drink large amounts of seawater and excrete the salt. Freshwater is more dilute [4] than the internal fluids of fish, however, so freshwater fish gain water osmotically through their gills. In some primitive bony fishes and amphibians, the larvae bear external gills, branching off from the gill [6] arches. These are reduced in adulthood, their function taken over by the gills proper in fishes and by lungs in most amphibians. Some amphibans retain the external larval gills in adulthood, the complex internal gill system as seen in fish apparently being irrevocably lost very early in the evolution of tetrapods Sharks and rays typically have five pairs of gill slits that open directly to the outside of the body, though some more primitive sharks have six or seven pairs. Adjacent slits are separated by a cartilaginous gill arch from which projects a long sheet-like septum, partly supported by a further piece of cartilage called the gill ray. The individual lamellae of the gills lie on either side of the septum. The base of the arch may also support gill rakers, small projecting elements that help to filter food [4] from the water. A smaller opening, the spiracle, lies in the back of the first gill slit. This bears a small pseudobranch that resembles a gill in structure, but only receives blood already oxygenated by [4] [8] the true gills. The spiracle is thought to be homologous to the ear opening in higher vertebrates. Most sharks rely on ram ventilation, forcing water into the mouth and over the gills by rapidly swimming forward. In slow-moving or bottom dwelling species, especially among skates and rays, the spiracle may be enlarged, and the fish breathes by sucking water through this opening, instead of [4] through the mouth. Chimaeras differ from other cartilagenous fish, having lost both the spiracle and the fifth gill slit. The remaining slits are covered by an operculum, developed from the septum of the gill arch in front of the [4] first gill.

Amoeba Cell Membrane

cell membrane - the thin layer of protein and fat that surrounds the amoeba; it allows some substances to pass into the cell, and blocks other substances. contractile vacuole - a cavity within the amoeba that excretes excess water and waste; the waste is brought to the cell membrane and is then eliminated from the amoeba. cytoplasm - a jelly-like material that fills most of the cell; the organelles (like the nucleus) are surrounded by cytoplasm. food vacuole - a cavity within the amoeba in which food is digested (broken down in order to be absorbed by the amoeba). food being engulfed by pseudopods - the amoeba "eats" by surrounding bits of food with pseudopods that form around the food; the amoeba then incorporates the food into the cell, forming a food vacuole. nucleus - the major organelle of the amoeba, located centrally; it controls reproduction (it contains the chromosomes) and many other important functions (including eating and growth). pseudopods - temporary "feet" that the amoeba uses to move around and to engulf food.
Amoebas are identified by their ability to form temporary cytoplasmic extensions called pseudopodia, or false feet, by means of which they move about. This type of movement, called amoeboid movement, is considered to be the most primitive form of animal locomotion. Amoebas are used extensively in cell research for determining the relative functions and interactions of the nucleus and the cytoplasm. Each amoeba contains a small mass of jellylike cytoplasm, which is differentiated into a thin outer plasma membrane, a layer of stiff, clear ectoplasm just within the plasma membrane, and a central granular endoplasm. The endoplasm contains food vacuoles, a granular nucleus, and a clear contractile vacuole. The amoeba has no mouth or anus; food is taken in and material excreted at any point on the cell surface. During feeding, extensions of cytoplasm flow around food particles, surrounding them and forming a vacuole into which enzymes are secreted to digest the particles. Oxygen diffuses into the cell from the surrounding water, and metabolic wastes diffuse from the amoeba into the surrounding water. A contractile vacuole, which removes excess water from the amoeba, is absent in most marine and parasitic species. Reproduction is asexual (binary fission). During adverse environmental periods many amoebas survive by encystment: the amoeba becomes circular, loses most of its water, and secretes a cyst membrane that serves as a protective covering. When the environment is again suitable, the envelope ruptures, and the amoeba emerges.