Chapter 1 Blood Components.pdf

Chapter 1 Blood components  Blood  What is in the blood???  Red cells  White cells  Platelets  Plasma  Blood  About 45% of a drop of blood is made from cells  There are two kinds:  Red cells  W...

Chapter 1 Blood components  Blood  What is in the blood???  Red cells  White cells  Platelets  Plasma  Blood  About 45% of a drop of blood is made from cells  There are two kinds:  Red cells  White cells  Red blood cells  Contain haemoglobin, which:  Transports oxygen from the lungs to the other body cells  Allows the blood to carry 100 times more oxygen than the same amount of water  There are 500 red cells for every white cell White blood cells  Fight disease  Attack bacteria and produce chemicals to stop virus infections  Gather at the site of a wound where the skin has been cut  They eat bacteria that trying to enter the body  The white cells die in the process and their bodies collect to form pus in the wound Platelets  Fragments of cells  These collect in the capillaries at the site of a wound  Act to block the flow of blood  Help the blood to form clots at the site of a wound  These clots stop blood leaking out of the wound Plasma  55% of blood is watery liquid called plasma  Yellowish liquid  This contains digested foods, hormones, urea (a waste product from the liver), carbon dioxide (produced by all the body cells) Plasma The components of blood