alleryStart learning →What fraction of carbon dioxide reaches the lungs as bicarbonate?
AAbout 20 percent of it
BAbout 70 percent of it
CAbout 10 percent of it
DAbout 45 percent of it
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. About 70 percent of it
1. The three routes carry unequal shares of the load.
2. The largest fraction, about 70 percent, is transported to the lungs as bicarbonate.
3. Most of that bicarbonate is produced inside erythrocytes.
4. The 20 percent figure belongs to carbaminohaemoglobin instead, so the first option names the wrong route.
_Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology (CC BY 4.0), Ch 22 "The Respiratory System", section 22.5 Transport of Gases_
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