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Lung surfactant (LS) is a surface-active material produced by most air-breathing animals for the purpose of reducing the surface tension of the water layer where gas exchange occurs in the lungs, given that the movements due to inhalation and exhalation may cause damage if there is not enough energy to sustain alveolar structural integrity.
It is a crescent-shaped space, encompassed by the lower edge of the left lung, the anterior border of the spleen, the left costal margin and the inferior margin of the left lobe of the liver. Thus, its surface markings are respectively the left sixth rib superiorly, the left mid axillary line laterally, and the left costal margin inferiorly.
Surface projections of the major organs of the trunk, using the vertebral column and rib cage as main reference points of surface anatomy. Surface anatomy (also called superficial anatomy and visual anatomy) is the study of the external features of the body of an animal. [1] In birds, this is termed topography.
The surface tension of a watery surface (the water-air interface) tends to make that surface shrink. [6] When that surface is curved as it is in the alveoli of the lungs, the shrinkage of the surface decreases the diameter of the alveoli. The more acute the curvature of the water-air interface the greater the tendency for the alveolus to ...
Compliance is the ability of lungs and thorax to expand. Lung compliance is defined as the volume change per unit of pressure change across the lung. Measurements of lung volume obtained during the controlled inflation/deflation of a normal lung show that the volumes obtained during deflation exceed those during inflation, at a given pressure.
Phosphatidylglycerol is a glycerophospholipid found in pulmonary surfactant [1] and in the plasma membrane where it directly activates lipid-gated ion channels. The general structure of phosphatidylglycerol consists of a L-glycerol 3-phosphate backbone ester-bonded to either saturated or unsaturated fatty acids on carbons 1 and 2.
The lungs are the largest organs in the lower respiratory tract. The lungs are suspended within the pleural cavity of the thorax. The pleurae are two thin membranes, one cell layer thick, which surround the lungs. The inner (visceral pleura) covers the lungs and the outer (parietal pleura) lines the inner surface of the chest wall. This ...
Insufficient surfactant in the lungs of preterm infants causes infant respiratory distress syndrome (IRDS). The lecithin–sphingomyelin ratio is a measure of fetal amniotic fluid to indicate lung maturity or immaturity. [28] A low ratio indicates a risk factor for IRDS. Lecithin and sphingomyelin are two of the glycolipids of pulmonary surfactant.