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Blood is a mixture of cells and a watery liquid, called plasma, that the cells float in. It also contains other things like nutrients (such as sugar), hormones, clotting agents, and waste products to be flushed out of the body.

There are three kinds of cells in the blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Red blood cells carry oxygen from the lungs throughout the body, white blood cells help fight infection, and platelets help in clotting.

Red blood cells (also called erythrocytes) are the most numerous, making up 40-45 percent of one's blood, and they give blood its characteristic color. Red blood cells are shaped like tiny doughnuts, with an indentation in the center instead of a hole. They contain a special molecule called hemoglobin, which carries the oxygen. In the lungs, where there is a lot of oxygen, the hemoglobin molecules loosely bind with oxygen. Each molecule of hemoglobin contains four iron atoms, and each iron atom can bind with one molecule of oxygen, allowing each hemoglobin molecule to carry four molecules of oxygen. In the capillaries, where there is little oxygen, the hemoglobin readily sheds the oxygen it is carrying and allows it to be absorbed by the body's cells. The iron in hemoglobin is what makes blood red.

A diagram of blood cells. White blood cells (leukocytes) are the body's mobile warriors in the battle against infection and invasion. There are three types of white blood cell: granulocytes, lymphocytes, and monocytes. There are, in turn, three kinds of granulocyte: neutrophils, eosinophils, and basophils. (Granulocytes are called that because they contain granules that hold digestive enzymes.) Neutrophils kill invading bacteria by ingesting and then digesting them. Eosinophils kill parasites, and are involved in allergic reactions. Basophils also function in allergic reactions, but are not well understood.

Lymphocytes are key parts of the body's immune system. There are two kinds of lymphocyte: T cells and B lymphocytes. T cells direct the activity of the immune system. B lymphocytes produce antibodies, which destroy foreign bodies. Monocytes, the largest kind of white blood cells, enter the tissues of the body and turn into even larger cells called macrophages. These eat foreign bacteria and destroy damaged, old, and dead cells of the body itself.

The blood cells called platelets (thrombocytes) help blood to clot, in several different ways. When bleeding occurs, platelets clump together to help form a clot. Also, when they are exposed to air (as they would be by a wound), platelets start breaking down and release a substance into the bloodstream. This substance starts a chain of chemical events that eventually causes a protein in the blood, fibrinogen, to turn into a different substance, fibrin, which forms long threads. These threads tangle up red blood cells to help form a clot, or scab, over the wound.

In their "resting" state, platelets look like two plates stuck together (hence the name). When "activated" and helping to form a clot, they change shape and look like tiny roundish blobs with tentacles. At only two to three microns, they are the smallest kind of blood cell.

Plasma is a clear, straw-colored liquid that carries the blood cells and various hormones, nutrients, and so on through the body. It makes up a little more than half of the total blood volume. Plasma is about 90 percent water. Much of the other ten percent comprises various kinds of protein molecules, including enzymes, clotting agents, immunoglobulins (part of the immune system), and proteins that carry hormones, vitamins, cholesterol, and other things the body needs. Plasma also contains sugar (glucose) and electrolytes like sodium, potassium, and calcium, as well as other things like the aforementioned hormones, vitamins, and cholesterol.

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15y ago
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13y ago

Blood plasma contains water, dissolved proteins, glucose, platelets, mineral ions, hormones and carbon dioxide.

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plasma is made up of water, blood, plasma .

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cellulose,oxygen, pectin

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Mostly made of waster. About 90%

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# # # #

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Q: Blood plasma is made up mostly of?
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Related questions

What part of the circulatory system is made mostly of water?

Plasma. You have three liters of plasma out of five liters of blood. Plasma is mainly made up of water.


Blood is mostly made up of?

white blood cells, red blood cells, platelets and plasma


Is the blood made up mainly plasma or blood cells?

85% of blood is made of plasma.


What is blood make of?

blood is made up of mostly blood cells, plasma, white blood cells and platelets. the rest is hormones, waste products and nutrients.


What part of the blood is mostly water?

Plasma is the component of blood that is made up of 90% water. It is a yellowish fluid, which carries nutrients, minerals, water, hormones, protein and waste products


What are the different parts that make up blood?

plasma mainly which is mostly water.


What is the fluid found in blood vessels called?

Blood is inside a blood vessel. Blood is made up of Red Blood Cells, White Blood cells, Platelets, and Plasma.


Is a human blood cell made up of smaller cells?

Yes, blood is composed of formed elements and the liquid matrix called plasma. The formed elements of blood are red blood cells (erythrocytes), white blood cells (leukocytes), and platelets (thrombocytes).


How much water is present in blood plasma?

Plasma is made up of 92 percent water.


What liquid is the blood made up of several types of cells called?

it is obviously Plasma.......................


What is the origin of plasma protein?

Blood proteins60% of plasma proteins are made up of the protein albumin


Describe the contents of blood plasma and its role in the human body?

Plasma in a yellowish fluid that carries the blood cells. It makes up 55% of our blood supply.... Plasma makes the blood sticky so that you dont bleed to death. it works with platelets 2 form scabs...Plasma is also made mostly of water