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Name: Laura P.
Status: Student
Age: 15
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: December 2002
Question:
What is the pH of blood? What substances keep the pH of the blood constant?


Replies:
Normal pH is about 7.35. There are a series of buffers which help the plasma resist any change in pH. Some of them include: the hemoglobin in the red blood cells, other plasma proteins, the bicarbonate buffer and the phosphate buffer.

Peter Faletra Ph.D.
Assistant Director
Science Education
Office of Science
Department of Energy

The pH of the blood (or any solution is: pH= -log(H+) a measure of how acidic or basic the blood is. Many physiological processes influence the pH, but one of the largest contributors is the CO2 content of the blood. CO2 + H2O = HCO3(-1) + H(+1)

Vince Calder


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