The respiratory system is responsible for inhaling oxygen and exhaling Co2. With help from the circulatory system, the oxygen that was inhaled, travels through arteries giving oxygen to cells. The cells then go through a process called cell respiration. In this process, oxygen and glucose get turned into energy, water and Co2. The co2 is a waste product, which means that it will kill the cells if not exhaled out because of its large size. In this case the carbon dioxide is taken out of the cell through diffusion and delivered by the capillaries and veins to the lungs and to be exhaled.
- In the picture to the right, you see the diffusion of carbon dioxide and oxygen between a capillary and an alveoli. The oxygen from the alveoli then heads to the cell for cell respiration which you can see in the picture to the left and the carbon dioxide, which came from the cell, enters the alveoli and is exhaled.
- In the picture to the right, you see the diffusion of carbon dioxide and oxygen between a capillary and an alveoli. The oxygen from the alveoli then heads to the cell for cell respiration which you can see in the picture to the left and the carbon dioxide, which came from the cell, enters the alveoli and is exhaled.
Lung cell interactions-
http://KovalLab.org/ic.html