Question

Based on your understanding of how gases are transported from body tissues to lungs, explain what would happen if no carbonic anhydrase was present in red blood cells.

a) Oxygen transport in the blood would increase.
b) Carbon dioxide transport in the blood would decrease.
c) Hydrogen ion production in the blood would decrease.
d) Carbon dioxide transport in the blood would be impaired.

Answer 1

Without carbonic anhydrase in red blood cells, the conversion of carbon dioxide to bicarbonate would be hindered, significantly impairing carbon dioxide transport in the blood.

Step-by-step explanation:

If no carbonic anhydrase were present in red blood cells, the transport of carbon dioxide from body tissues to the lungs would be significantly impaired. Normally, approximately 70 percent of carbon dioxide (a waste product of metabolism) is transported to the lungs as bicarbonate. This process relies on the enzyme carbonic anhydrase, which catalyzes the reaction of carbon dioxide with water to form carbonic acid (H2CO3). Carbonic acid then dissociates into bicarbonate (HCO3−) and hydrogen ions (H+). Without this enzyme, carbon dioxide would not be efficiently converted into bicarbonate, leading to a decrease in the most significant mode of carbon dioxide transport. As a result, the correct answer to what would happen if no carbonic anhydrase were present in red blood cells is d) Carbon dioxide transport in the blood would be impaired.