Questions: Essentials of General, Organic, and Biochemistry Denise Guinn THIRD EDITION presented by Macmilan Learning The pH of blood is tightly regulated and normally falls between 7.35 and 7.45. A condition called acidosis occurs when blood pH falls below 7.35 and is too acidic. A condition called alkalosis occurs when blood pH rises above 7.45 and is too basic. A patient with respiratory depression is at risk of developing an acid-base imbalance in the blood. Why does this imbalance occur and what is the resulting medical condition called? The carbonic acid/hydrogen carbonate buffer system as the major buffer system responsible for controlling blood pH. H^+(aq) + HCO3^-(aq) <=> H2CO3(aq) <=> CO2(g) + H2O(l) When the equilibrium shifts to consume the additional CO2 in the blood as the result of respiratory depression, what happens to the blood pH? The pH increases because the equilibrium shifts to consume H^+. The pH decreases because the equilibrium shifts to consume H^+. The pH decreases because the equilibrium shifts to produce more H^+. The pH increases because the equilibrium shifts to produce more H^+.

Transcript text: Essentials of General, Organic, and Biochemistry Denise Guinn THIRD EDITION presented by Macmilan Learning The pH of blood is tightly regulated and normally falls between 7.35 and 7.45. A condition called acidosis occurs when blood pH falls below 7.35 and is too acidic. A condition called alkalosis occurs when blood pH rises above 7.45 and is too basic. A patient with respiratory depression is at risk of developing an acid-base imbalance in the blood. Why does this imbalance occur and what is the resulting medical condition called? The carbonic acid/hydrogen carbonate buffer system as the major buffer system responsible for controlling blood pH . \[ \mathrm{H}^{+}(\mathrm{aq})+\mathrm{HCO}_{3}^{-}(\mathrm{aq}) \rightleftharpoons \mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{CO}_{3}(\mathrm{aq}) \rightleftharpoons \mathrm{CO}_{2}(\mathrm{~g})+\mathrm{H}_{2} \mathrm{O}(\mathrm{l}) \] When the equilibrium shifts to consume the additional $\mathrm{CO}_{2}$ in the blood as the result of respiratory depression, what happens to the blood pH ? The pH increases because the equilibrium shifts to consume $\mathrm{H}^{+}$. The pH decreases because the equilibrium shifts to consume $\mathrm{H}^{+}$. The pH decreases because the equilibrium shifts to produce more $\mathrm{H}^{+}$. The pH increases because the equilibrium shifts to produce more $\mathrm{H}^{+}$.