Explain6 marksChallenge
A researcher investigates the transport of carbon dioxide in human blood. She treats a sample of whole blood with an inhibitor of carbonic anhydrase and compares the amount of carbon dioxide released in the lungs to a control sample without the inhibitor. The treated sample releases much less carbon dioxide than the control.
Explain the role of carbonic anhydrase in red blood cells in the transport of carbon dioxide, and describe the importance of the chloride shift in this process.