AQUINO, NICOLE M.

BIOCHEMISTRY LECTURE
MEDICINE 1A AUGUST 15, 2019

1. What is the most common etiology for COPD?

COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)

-a progressive disease that makes it hard to breath.
-associated with group of breathing conditions:
 Chronic bronchitis (Chronic mucus production)
 Asthma I COPD
 Emphysema (destruction of airsacs)
CAUSES:

 Smoking
 Long term exposure to irritants: (Second hand smoke, air pollution, dust, workplace fumes,
biomass exposure)
 Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency

RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS THAT CAN WORSEN COPD:

 Influenza
 Pneumonia

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:

 Shortness of breath
 Wheezing
 Chest tightness
 Ongoing (chest) cough
 Difficulty with routine activities
 Fatigue
 Weight loss
 Muscle loss
In COPD:

 Airways become thick and inflamed

 Produce more mucus that clog airways
 Damage airsacs- lost their elasticity; become floppy and broken

2. What is the acid base abnormality in this patient?

 Hypercapnia- (hypercarbia) condition arising from too much carbon dioxide in the blood.
Caused by hypoventilation or disordered breathing where not enough oxygen enters the lungs
and not enough carbon dioxide emitted.
 Respiratory Acidosis- condition that occurs when the lungs can’t remove enough of the carbon
dioxide produced by the body. Excess carbon dioxide causes the pH of blood and other bodily
fluids to decrease, making them too acidic.
3. What is “partial pressure of dissolve gas”?

Partial pressure- the rate of diffusion of each of the gas is directly proportional to the pressure caused
by the gas alone.

Example: The total pressure of air at sea level averages 760mmHg. The pressure that each gas
contributes to the total pressure in direct proportion to its concentration.
-79%nof 760mmHg is caused by Nitrogen (600mmHg)
-21% by oxygen (160mmHg)
The partial pressure of Nitrogen in the mixture is 600mmHg and the partial pressure of Oxygen is
160mmHg.

4. Explain biochemically the pathogenesis of hypercapnia.

In COPD:
CO2 + H2O  H2CO3  -HCO3 +H

o In hypercapnia, carbon dioxide is hydrated and forms carbonic acid that subsequently
dissociate into bicarbonate and hydrogen ions.
o There is an increase of hydrogen ion concentration which leads to development of
respiratory acidosis, called hypercapnic acidosis.

5. Explain biochemically how may the body compensate to the acid-base abnormality.