Key Functions and Components of Blood Plasma
Blood is a mixture of plasma and cells that flow through the whole body. It is a specialized body fluid which is responsible for supplying vital substances, such as sugars, hormones and oxygen, throughout the body. It also eliminates waste in the body from the cells.
Blood mainly carries RBC (red blood cells), WBC (white blood cells), blood platelets, plasma and serum as the major components. Among these elements, the main blood component is plasma.
What is Plasma in the Human Body?
Plasma can be described as a portion of the blood that is extracellular and liquid, transparent and pale yellow or straw-coloured. It consists primarily of clotting variables and other protein molecules. Overall, 50 to 55% of the overall blood volume is plasma.
Blood plasma primarily contains 80 to 90 percent of water while the remaining 10 percent is the nutrients, salts, enzymes, lipids, and hormones.
Plasma within the blood cells is found to be abundant in proteins, fibrinogen, clotting factors, and immunoglobulin. This protein is responsible for helping with coagulation factors and maintaining osmotic serum pressure as well.
What Does Plasma Contain?
Plasma is highly translucent compared to other blood cells. Also, other blood cells can be freely suspended inside the plasma. So, the features of blood plasma explain ‘what does plasma contain’. Blood plasma has other special characteristics:
Plasma majorly carries immunoglobulin, Fibrinogen, electrolytes and proteins.
The primary medium for excretory substance transportation is blood plasma.
Blood plasma is roughly 1025 kg/m3 or 1.025 g/ml in mass.
Plasma is the blood medium in which various forms of blood cells reside.
Blood plasma does have a long shelf life; it can also be stored and can be used for more than a year.
What is the Function of Blood Plasma?
The below-mentioned points are the explanation to the question ‘what is the function of blood plasma’.
Plasma is extracted from the liquid component of the blood and is routinely used for assessing the blood group of the patient in blood group research studies.
Blood plasma also includes vital proteins and other essential components required for optimal health. Hence, patients with liver failure and life-threatening injuries are given blood plasma transfusions.
Plasma is the fluid particles in the blood that contain the fibrinogen clotting agent which works by preventing excessive blood flow during injury.
Blood plasma also contains proteins that assist in the transport of glucose as well as other nutrients to various parts of the body.
Blood plasma helps to regulate body temperature and is responsible for regulating blood pressure.
Plasma can also be termed as the blood matrix. It is composed of coagulation factors, serum and protein compounds.
Along with blood clotting, the fluid matrix helps in circulation of blood platelets, red blood cells (RBC) and white blood cells (WBC), hormones, and the digested food particles.
As stated above, plasma also acts as the primary means of transporting excretory products by transporting waste materials from the cells to the excretory organs. From these organs, waste materials are flushed out of the body.
What is Blood Plasma Used For?
Plasma is usually given to patients with trauma, burning and shock, as well as people with serious liver disease or several defects in the clotting factor. This helps raise the blood flow of the patient, which can reduce shock, and helps with blood clotting. For conditions such as immune defects and bleeding disorders, pharmaceutical firms use plasma to produce treatments.
What is Plasma Donation?
A plasma-only donation can be defined as the process where the liquid part of the donor's blood is isolated from cells. Blood samples are taken from one arm and sent into a high-tech plasma-gathering system. The red blood cells and platelets of the donor are then returned along with some saline to the donor. The procedure is healthy and only takes a few minutes longer than a whole blood donation.
In order to retain the valuable clotting factors, donated plasma is frozen within 24 hours of being donated. It can be preserved for up about one year and frozen for transfusion to a patient where needed. Instead of prescription applications, Red Cross donations are also used directly for hospital patient transfusions. So, before the donation, one must know what is plasma in the body.
FAQs on What Is Plasma in Blood?
1. What is blood plasma and what percentage of blood does it make up?
Blood plasma is the straw-coloured, viscous fluid component of blood in which the blood cells are suspended. It constitutes about 55% of the total blood volume. Plasma is primarily composed of water (about 90-92%) and also contains essential proteins, glucose, ions, hormones, and dissolved gases.
2. What are the main components of blood plasma?
The main components of blood plasma include:
- Water: Makes up about 90-92% of plasma volume, acting as a solvent.
- Plasma Proteins: Constitute 6-8% and include Fibrinogen (for clotting), Globulins (for defence mechanisms), and Albumins (for osmotic balance).
- Nutrients: Such as glucose, amino acids, and lipids, which are transported to the body's tissues.
- Electrolytes: Ions like sodium, potassium, calcium, and chloride that are crucial for nerve function and osmotic pressure.
- Hormones and Enzymes: Transported to target organs.
- Waste Products: Such as urea and creatinine, which are transported to the kidneys for excretion.
3. What are the primary functions of blood plasma in the body?
The primary functions of blood plasma are crucial for maintaining homeostasis and overall health. Key roles include:
- Transport: It transports nutrients, hormones, antibodies, and waste products throughout the body.
- Regulation: It helps regulate body temperature and maintains the body's pH balance.
- Blood Clotting: It contains clotting factors like fibrinogen, which are essential for preventing excessive bleeding.
- Immunity: It carries antibodies (immunoglobulins) that help fight off infections.
- Maintaining Blood Pressure: The volume of plasma is a key determinant of blood pressure and circulation.
4. What is the specific role of the major plasma proteins?
The major plasma proteins each have a specific, vital role. Albumins are the most abundant and are primarily responsible for maintaining the colloid osmotic pressure of the blood, which prevents fluid from leaking out of blood vessels. Globulins are diverse and include antibodies (gamma globulins) for immune defence and transport proteins. Fibrinogen is a key protein that is converted to fibrin during the clotting process, forming a mesh to stop bleeding.
5. How does plasma differ from blood serum?
The key difference between plasma and serum lies in the presence of clotting factors. Plasma is the complete liquid portion of blood that is obtained when an anticoagulant is used to prevent clotting. It therefore contains all the clotting factors, including fibrinogen. In contrast, serum is the fluid that remains after the blood has been allowed to clot. During clotting, fibrinogen is converted to fibrin, which is removed along with the blood cells. Therefore, serum is essentially plasma without the clotting factors.
6. Why is maintaining the correct water balance in plasma crucial for the body?
Maintaining the correct water balance in plasma is crucial because it directly impacts blood volume, blood pressure, and the concentration of electrolytes and other solutes. If the water content is too low (dehydration), blood becomes thicker, increasing the strain on the heart and potentially leading to low blood pressure. If it's too high, it can lead to high blood pressure and dilute essential electrolytes, disrupting nerve and muscle function. This balance is critical for maintaining homeostasis.
7. What happens if the composition of plasma is abnormal?
An abnormal composition of plasma can lead to serious health issues. For example, low levels of albumin can cause fluid to leak from blood vessels into tissues, resulting in oedema (swelling). A deficiency in clotting factors can lead to excessive bleeding (hemophilia), while an overabundance can cause unwanted blood clots (thrombosis). Similarly, imbalances in electrolytes can affect heart rhythm and nerve signalling, highlighting plasma's role as a vital indicator of overall health.
8. How is donated plasma used in various medical treatments?
Donated plasma is a critical resource in medicine because it can be separated into its various components, each with unique therapeutic uses. These treatments, known as plasma protein therapies, are used for:
- Treating immune deficiencies with concentrated antibodies (immunoglobulins).
- Managing bleeding disorders like haemophilia with clotting factors.
- Treating shock, trauma, and severe burns with albumin to restore blood volume.
- Addressing rare genetic conditions where a specific plasma protein is missing.
