Final answer:
Blood plasma water carries essential substances such as electrolytes (sodium, potassium, calcium), dissolved gases (oxygen, carbon dioxide), organic nutrients (glucose, amino acids, lipids, vitamins), and metabolic wastes (urea). Additionally, it transports hormones and antibodies throughout the body.
Step-by-step explanation:
Plasma water, making up about 92% of the blood plasma, carries a wide range of critical substances throughout our system. The primary components include:
- Electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, and calcium ions, which are crucial for nerve impulses and muscle contractions.
- Dissolved gases like oxygen and carbon dioxide, essential for cellular respiration and maintaining acid-base balance in the body.
- Various organic nutrients including glucose, which serves as an energy source; amino acids the building blocks of proteins; lipids that play a role in energy storage and cell structure; and vitamins that are necessary for metabolic processes.
- Metabolic wastes such as urea, which are products of protein metabolism and need to be excreted from the body.
Other substances carried by plasma include hormones, which regulate various physiological processes, and antibodies that are part of the immune system’s defense against pathogens.