Question

The amount of water present in blood plasma is
A. 60 \[\%\]
B. 70 $\%$
C. 80 $\%$
D. 90 $\%$

Answer 1

Hint: Blood consists of red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets in its solid parts and the fluid parts is composed of water, salts and proteins. Blood plasma is the liquid part of the blood that is responsible for carrying blood and proteins throughout the body.

Complete answer:
The yellowish liquid component of the blood which is responsible for holding the red blood cells in a suspension. It makes up 55% of the total body’s blood volume. It is the major intravascular fluid part of the extracellular fluids present in the body. It consists mostly of water 90-92$\%$, clotting factors, important dissolved proteins like albumins, fibrinogens and globulins, glucose, hormones, electrolytes like ${\text{N}}{{\text{a}}^ + }$,${\text{M}}{{\text{g}}^ + }$,${\text{C}}{{\text{a}}^ + }$,${\text{HC}}{{\text{O}}_3}^ -$and ${\text{C}}{{\text{l}}^ - }$, carbon dioxide collected as waste to be eliminated and oxygen to be delivered to different body parts.
Plasma is mostly transparent but can be opaque sometimes due to elevated levels of cholesterol and triglycerides. It is yellow in colour due to the presence of carotenoids, transferrins, bilirubin and haemoglobin. It can be of different shades of orange, brown (due to hemolysis) and green (due to sulfhemoglobin) under abnormal conditions.

Functions of plasma –
-Carries important electrolytes to our muscles.
-Transport critical proteins involved in blood clotting and immunity.
-Helps to maintain the volume and pressure of blood.
-Helps to maintain body pH for proper cell functioning.

Blood plasma is given to people having severe liver disease or deficiency of clotting factors. Patients suffering from shock, trauma or major burns are also given blood plasma as it increases their blood volume and helps with blood clotting and immunoglobulins. Blood plasma is being donated in which plasma is separated from the blood with the help of a machine that draws blood from the arm of the donor and separates the red blood cells and platelets from it which are sent back to the donor’s body by mixing in some saline and the plasma is collected separately. The donated plasma is frozen within 24 hours of donation in order to preserve the essential clotting factors and this frozen plasma can be stored up to one year.

Hence, the correct answer is option (D).

Note: As blood plasma consists of immunoglobulins it also has some antibodies which are produced in response to some disease like COVID-19, this plasma can help patients that have just got the infection to get rid of it soon if they get the plasma from a person who have had the COVID-19 infection and got healed from it as his plasma will have antibodies required to fight that particular infection.