Based on the text what is meant by "semipermeable membrane" and why is it necessary for gas exchange between O2 and CO2?
Transcribed Image Text: Vaping May Cause a Rare Condition Known as 'Popcorn Lung'
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A teen in Canada may be the first person to develop "popcorn lung" due to vaping. The 17-year-old went to the emergency room
after he developed a severe, uncontrollable cough, along with difficulty breathing and a fever. The teen was previously healthy but reported
that he had vaped every day for the last five months. He vaped a variety of flavored electronic cigarettes, which he purchased online, and
often added THC (an ingredient in marijuana that produces the feeling of being high) to his vaping fluid. The teen's condition soon worsened,
and he was admitted to the intensive care unit. His lungs were so damaged that he had to be placed on an ECMO machine, which pumps
blood through an artificial lung outside the body.
Everyday functions of the body like digesting your food, moving your muscles or even just
thinking, need oxygen. When these processes happen, a gas called carbon dioxide is produced
as a waste product. The job of your lungs is to provide your body with oxygen and to get rid of
Blood In
the waste gas, carbon dioxide.Your brain constantly gets signals from your body which detect
the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your blood.Your brain will send signals to the
muscles involved in breathing and adjust your breathing rate depending on how active you are.
Alveoli
When we inhale, oxygen enters the lungs and travels through passageways to reach
Co, Out o, In
300,000,000 alveoli. Much of the outside surface area of alveoli is covered with tiny capillaries.
These capillaries and the walls of alveoli share a very thin semipermeable membrane that allows
oxygen from inhaled air to pass through the walls of alveoli and enter the bloodstream via the
capillaries. At the same time, carbon dioxide is pushed out in the same way when the air is
exhaled (the image to the right shows this process). During diffusion, molecules move from high
concentration to low concentration. The lungs experience diffusion each time oxygen moves from the alveoli to the blood through the
capillaries lining the alveolar walls.
Blood Out
The level of ability to breathe is determined by the amount of surface area available for this gas/blood exchange. In a normal
healthy adult, there is an abundance of available area for this process. This however is not the case for individuals who smoke. Over time, the
toxins inhaled from smoke break the thin walls of alveoli, leaving larger, less efficient air sacs. The sacs also begin to lose their bounce, making
it harder to bring in the oxygen and release carbon dioxide.
As doctors conducted multiple tests on the teen, imaging tests showed that the teen had bronchiolitis, which means that the smallest
airways in the lungs, called bronchioles, are inflamed and obstructed. That's when doctors suspected that the teen could have "popcorn
lung". Popcorn lung is the severe scarring of the tiny air sacs (bronchioles) in the lungs resulting in the thickening and narrowing of the airways.
While the name "popcorn lung" may not Sound like a threat, it's a serious lung disease that causes coughing, wheezing and shortness of
breath. The condition gets its name from a cluster of cases that occurred more than a decade ago among workers at a microwave popcorn
factory. The workers developed bronchiolitis after breathing in the chemical diacetyl, an artificial flavoring used in microwave popcorn.
Diacetyl has been found in e-cigarettes before; indeed, in 2016, the American Lung Association even warned about the risks of diacetyl in
flavored e-cigarettes. Popcorn lung hasn't been connected with a case of vaping-related lung injury, until now, The new case represents the
first direct evidence of bronchiolitis or "popcorn lung" from e-cigarettes. The teen's condition was so severe that he was referred to a lung
fransplant center and narrowly avoided needing a double lung transplant. Still, the Candian teen ended up spending nearly 50 days in the
hospital and continues to recover at home. It appears that he now has chronic damage to his airways and his exercise ability is limited.
egble membrane" and why is it necessary for gas exchange between O, and CO,?