I'm not sure how to answer one of my homework questions. SraJMCGIN was nice enough to direct me to a site but I already had been there. My teacher kinda of indicted it was true but I don't know how it can- could someone take a second look, please at this question?
Is one function of the alveoli to filter out dirt and pollen before it reaches the lung and why or why not. I don't think it is because the alveoli are used to oxgenate the blood, correct. I don't think they filter out dirt or pollen, do they?
Your bronchial tubes not only bring the air from your trachea to your alveoli, they also help clean your lungs. Your bronchial tubes are covered with MUCUS, which sticks to dirt and germs that get into your lungs. The cilia work like little brooms, filtering out the dirt, etc. Therefore I think the alveoli's function is to do gas exchange with the blood.
So I would say false.
Sra
You are correct in your understanding that the primary function of the alveoli is to oxygenate the blood. The alveoli are tiny air sacs located at the end of the bronchioles in the lungs. Their main job is to facilitate the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the lungs and the bloodstream. However, they do not play a significant role in directly filtering out dirt or pollen.
The air we breathe in can contain various particles, including dust, dirt, and pollen. These particles are trapped and filtered by the respiratory system even before they reach the alveoli. The first line of defense against these particles is the nose and the nasal passages. The nose is equipped with hair and mucus membranes which help to trap and filter out larger particles.
The smaller particles that manage to pass through the nose and reach the lungs are trapped in the airway passages, specifically in the mucus produced by goblet cells and in the presence of cilia. The mucus lines the airways and acts as a sticky layer that catches particles, while the cilia are tiny hair-like structures that move in coordinated waves to sweep the trapped particles out of the airways. This mechanism is known as mucociliary clearance and helps to minimize the amount of foreign particles that reach the alveoli.
Therefore, while the alveoli themselves do not actively filter out dirt or pollen, the respiratory system as a whole has various mechanisms in place to prevent these particles from reaching the delicate and sensitive alveoli.