Final answer:
Erythrocytes, or red blood cells, specializing in oxygen transport, contain hemoglobin which binds oxygen molecules to carry them throughout the body. These cells are crucial for delivering oxygen to body tissues and removing carbon dioxide.
Step-by-step explanation:
The cells in the human body specialized for transporting oxygen throughout the body are called erythrocytes, also known as red blood cells. These cells are packed with a metalloprotein known as hemoglobin, which can bind up to four molecules of oxygen. Each hemoglobin molecule is composed of four subunits, each containing one atom of iron bound to a heme group that actually binds the oxygen.
Erythrocytes develop in the bone marrow and when matured, they lack nuclei and mitochondria, which allows for more hemoglobin to be contained within, ensuring a higher capacity for oxygen transport. The primary role of erythrocytes is to transport oxygen from the lungs to the body's tissues and return carbon dioxide from the tissues back to the lungs for expulsion.
The affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen is what allows our blood to effectively carry large amounts of this essential gas to every cell in our body, and is crucial for the cellular respiration process that produces energy for our cells' functions.