true or false? the driving force for the unloading of oxygen from hemoglobin into tissues is the difference in pco2 levels between the blood and body tissues.
LectureNotes said, “True or false? The driving force for the unloading of oxygen from hemoglobin into tissues is the difference in pCO2 levels between the blood and body tissues.”
Answer:
False. The driving force for the unloading of oxygen from hemoglobin into tissues is primarily the partial pressure of oxygen (pO2) rather than the difference in pCO2 levels between the blood and body tissues. When oxygen is loaded onto hemoglobin in the lungs, it binds to hemoglobin due to the high pO2 in the lungs. As the blood carrying oxygen-rich hemoglobin travels to tissues with lower pO2 levels, oxygen is released from hemoglobin and diffuses into the tissues where it is needed for cellular respiration. The Bohr effect, which involves the influence of pH and pCO2 on hemoglobin’s oxygen-binding affinity, also plays a role in the unloading of oxygen from hemoglobin.