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BIOL10002
Biomolecules and cells

Lecture 23
Regulation of Respiration
[Sadava et al., Life, The Science of Biology (10e) Chap. 49]

Dr. Stephen Frankenberg

BioSciences 4, Rm 357
8344 4343
srfr@unimelb.edu.au

Department of Zoology

Lecture outline:

How do water and air breathers get oxygen

into their bodies?
How does the human lung work?
How is breathing regulated?
Challenges of living at high al:tude

Respiratory organs gills

invaginated extension of the body surface

highly folded to increase surface area
protected by a specialised cover (operculum)
internal circulatory system distributes blood throughout
the gill and body

Gills transfer of O2
Deoxygenated
(afferent)
blood enters
(O2 low)

Filament Gill arch

Oxygenated
(efferent)
blood leaves
(O2 high)

Water flow

Water flow

Lamella
Deoxygenated
blood
Afferent
blood vessel

Oxygenated
blood

Efferent
blood vessel

Lamellae:
increase the surface area for gas exchange
reduce the diusion path-length between water and blood

Mechanism of ven<la<on in sh
Gill arches
(under opercular ap)

Mouth

Gill arch
Gill lament
Gill slit
Opercular
ap
Horizontal sec:on
through head

Uni-direc:onal ow of water through the

gills in most sh is achieved by:
sequen:al opening and closing of the
mouth and operculum
a small pressure dieren:al between
the buccal and opercular cavi:es

Air-breathing sh
Over 400 species!!!
Have specialised accessory breathing organs that they use in
addi:on to or instead of gills when breathing air

Mudskipper: has specialised

reinforced gills that do not
collapse in air, allowing limited
gas exchange when out of water

Armored caCish: has a highly

modied and vascularised intes:ne
which is used for gas exchange out
of water. Air is swallowed and later
expelled from the anus.

Respiratory organs LUNGS

invaginated internalised extension of the body surface; highly

folded to increase surface area for gas exchange
ven:la:on mechanism helps move air into and out of the lungs

Respiratory organs lungs

Bronchi are the major air

passageways of the lung

branch into bronchioles
at end of the bronchioles are
the alveoli


How is the structure of alveoli
related to func:on?

Respiratory exchange surface alveoli

AIR
Oxygenated
blood to heart
Pulmonary
venule
Smooth muscle

Deoxygenated
blood from heart
Pulmonary
arteriole

Oxygenated
blood to heart

Bronchiole
Alveoli
O2

Red
blood
cell

Cell of
alveolus

CO2
Capillary
Smallest blood
vessels (capillaries)

Interior of
alveolus

Deoxygenated
blood from heart

very thin alveolar walls

and capillary walls

Respiratory tract secre<ons

Many epithelial cells lining the
airways produce a s:cky mucus
that captures inhaled dirt and
microorganisms
Other cells lining the airways have
cilia whose bea:ng con:nually
sweeps the mucus, with its trapped
debris, up toward the pharynx.

The mucus escalator!!
keeps the lungs clean

Respiratory problems caused by

abnormal respiratory secre<ons
Smoking immobilises the cilia of the
airways for hours
Smokers cough = malfunctioning
mucus escalator cant clear
obstructing mucus from airways

Among Caucasians, about one baby in

2,500 is born with cystic fibrosis
Unusually thick and dry respiratory
mucus
Obstructs the airway and also obstructs
cilia function

Cause of cys<c brosis

Single gene muta:on results in non-func:onal chloride channel protein

Chloride ions cannot leave the cell a very thick mucus forms, which
becomes clogged with debris and bacteria

Respiratory tract secre<ons lung surfactant

A surfactant reduces the surface tension of a liquid
Lung surfactant is a phospholipoprotein secreted by
some alveolar cells
Results in less force required to inate lungs

Mammalian ven<la<on system: diaphragm

The pleural membranes

line the pleural cavity and
cover each lung and the
thoracic cavity

Inhala:on: diaphragm contracts and pulls down on the

thoracic cavity and pleural membranes, which pull on the
lungs, air enters through the trachea, and the lungs expand
Exhala:on: diaphragm relaxes; elas:c lung :ssues pull the
diaphragm back up and push air out of the airways

Mammalian ven<la<on system intercostal muscles

Breathe in

Breathe out

During strenuous exercise:

Inhala<on is aided by
contrac:on of external intercostals,
which pushes out ribs and
increases thoracic volume

Exhala<on is aided by
contrac:on of internal intercostals,
which pulls in ribs and decreases
thoracic volume

Regula<on of ven<la<on/respira<on

Normally involuntary but can be

voluntary
Sensory inputs are sent to the
central nervous system
Respiratory centre in the brainstem
(medulla and pons) determines
depth, amplitude and frequency of
breathing
Phrenic nerve controls contrac:on
and lowering of diaphragm
Eerent nerves (spinal motor
neurons) ac:vate intercostal
muscles

Can we alter our breathing rate and how?

Neural input from higher
brain centers

Chemoreceptors on the ventral surface

of the medulla are sensi:ve to increases
in PCO2 (via change in pH)

Pons (fine-tunes rhythm)

Medulla
Nerves

Chemoreceptors in the
aor:c and caro:d bodies
are sensi:ve to large
decreases in PO2

Carotid body

Dorsal
respiratory
neurons
Spinal
cord
Output to
diaphragm

Aortic body

Heart

Can we alter our breathing rate and how?

Breathing rate is more

sensi:ve to increased CO2
than to decreased O2

PCO2

PO2

Increase in blood PCO2

causes increase in
breathing rate to match
metabolic demand

Overcoming the problems of hypoxia

(short-term)
When O2 is reduced at high al<tude, an animal
hyperven:lates, due to ac:va:on of
chemoreceptors in aor:c & caro:d bodies to
maintain sucient O2 delivery
In aqua<c hypoxia causes an increase in gill ven:la:on in sh
due to s:mula:on of chemoreceptors in the gills
Animals reduce energy expenditure and use anaerobic
metabolic pathways to survive periods of reduced O2 availability
Increased BPG (previous lecture)

Overcoming the problems of high al<tude

(long-term)
Reset the thresholds of the chemoreceptors
for CO2 so they tolerate higher CO2 levels in
the blood for O2 so that they are more
sensi:ve to low PO2
Increase the number of red blood cells and
blood hemoglobin content (increases O2
capacity of the blood)
Reduc:on in blood O2 s:mulates produc:on of
erythropoie:n in the kidney and liver. This acts
on bone marrow to produce more red blood
cells.

Overcoming the problems of high al<tude

(long-term)

Andeans increase the number of red

blood cells and blood hemoglobin content
(increases O2 capacity of the blood)

Tibetans increase their oxygen intake by

taking more breaths per minute than people
who live at sea level

Hyperven<la<on
Excessive breathing beyond actual O2 requirement
Can be involuntary (e.g. anxiety or panic) or voluntary
Voluntary hyperven:la:on before underwater diving can
cause dangerous shallow water blackout due to hypocapnia:

Abnormally low CO2 level results

in failure in urge to breathe

What do I expect you to learn from this lecture?

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Respiratory organs gills (structure).

Respiratory organs lungs & alveoli (structure).
Func:on of cilia and mucus lining bronchi.
How is breathing controlled? medulla, chemoreceptors
Carbon dioxide and inuence on breathing.
Living at high al:tude (e.g. short-term, long-term
changes).