FacultyofBiotechnology

BIOCHEMISTRY
BCHM102b

ASSIGNMENTI-Part1

OnAcid-basebalanceinsidethehumanbodyextracellular
fluid

MuhammedSayedHassan
ID:171741
GROUP(B)

Submittedto:Dr.AshrafBakkar



Whatkeepsthenormalacid-basebalanceinsidethehumanbody
extracellularfluid?

Introduction:

ThepHrangeoftheextracellularfluidinanormalpersonisfrom7.35to7.45,so
it'sslightlybasicandusuallythebodymaintainspHofbloodcloseto7.4.The
acid-basebalancecanbemeasuredbythelevelsofcarbon-dioxide(acid)and
bicarbonate(base).AnydisturbanceofthispHrangecancausedeath.

Acid-baseimbalance:AcidosisandAlkalosis

Acid-basebalanceinsidethehumanbodycanbeaffectedthroughsomemore
thanonefactor,eitherthroughintakeofacidicorbasiccompoundsorthe
decreasedeliminationofthem.Thiscanleadtotwodifferenttypesof
abnormalitiesofacid-basebalance:

1)Acidosis:Iftheextracellularfluidhasanincreasedacidquantitythannormal.
(pHlessthan7.3)andleadstoacidemia.
2)Alkalosis:Iftheextracellularfluidhasanincreasedbasequantitythannormal.
(pHmorethan7.5)andleadstoalkalemia.

Figure(1):pHscaleshowingthenormalpHlevelofthehumanbloodalongwiththesurvivalrangefrom7.0to
7.8

Classificationofacid-basedisorders:

Acidosisandalkalosiscanbeanimportantcluethatthere'samedicalcause
behindthem,Therearetwotypesofacidosisandalkalosis:

1) Metabolic:It'scausedbymetabolicerrorslikeanimbalanceinthe
productionofacidsandbasesortheirexcretion.
2) Respiratory:It'scausedbychangesincarbondioxideconcentrationin
extracellularfluidduetooverexhalationasinHyperventilationor
breathingdisorders.

There'sthreedifferentmechanismsincontrollingacid-basebalance:

I)Buffersystems.(likeCH3COOH/CH3COO-NaandNH3/NH4Cl)
II)Kidneys.(excretionofextraacidsorbases)[takesseveraldays]
III)Lungs.(maintainsanormalpacetonormalizecarbondioxidelevelsinblood)

Figure(2):Adiagramshowingthetypesofalkalosisandacidosisandhowthebodyorganscompensatesit.

Discussion:

Asthebodyisexposedtomanydifferenttypesacid-basedisturbances,it
stimulatestheautomaticcompensatorymechanismsforgettingbackthepHof
theextracellulartonormal.Ifthebodycouldn'tcompensatebackthepHchange
thiscouldleadtoacidemiaoralkalemiawhichistheconditionoflowbloodpH
andHighbloodpHrespectively.Thenamedicaltreatmentisurgentlyrequiredto
treattheunderlyingcauseofthisacid-basedisturbance.

Table(1):Primarydisturbancesandit'seffectonthebody,andhowthebodycompensatesit.

References:

- Needham, A. 2004. Comparative and Environmental Physiology. Acidosis and Alkalosis.

- "Mixed Acid Base Disorders: Acid Base Tutorial, University of Connecticut Health Center".
Archived from the original on 26 April 2009. Retrieved 2009-05-09
- Table (1): http://www.msdmanuals.com
- Figure (1): strengthnutrition101.blogspot.com
- Figure (2): http://intranet.tdmu.edu.ua