The alveoli are structures that belong to the respiratory system, they behave like blood filters since they are capable of gas exchange. The alveoli are located within the lungs and are the fundamental and functional structure of the respiratory system, since if they do not work, the patient can simply die; Each lung has more than 5 million alveoli for each lobe, it has a morula shape and is completely lined by capillaries (tiny blood vessels), these are born directly from the respiratory tract known as acinus or pulmonary lobule, located in the most distal portion of the tree bronchial.
As mentioned previously, the alveoli are the fundamental structure of the respiratory system for carrying out gas exchange or blood oxygenation, this is nothing more than the ability to transport oxygen to the blood and release carbon dioxide (CO2) through exhalation, then working as a powerful blood detoxifierand for this reason it behaves like a vital organ for the organism. It is important to know how the respiratory system is constituted, which begins from the nostrils to the alveoli: firstly, there are the nostrils, which are responsible for heating and humidifying the air that enters from the outside, later is the pharynx, larynx and trachea, these are the structures found in the throat area.
The trachea, being at the level of the first costal vertebra, undergoes a bifurcation (division) in two main bronchi (left and right), these penetrate the lungs and within them they branch out to ducts with a decrease in their caliber, bronchi The main bronchi are divided into terminal bronchi, these in turn are divided into bronchioles which branch to the pulmonary acinus and the alveoli are born from these.
The alveoli have the ability to exchange through the membrane that divides the alveolar space from the capillary known as the "respiratory membrane", which must remain intact for its proper function; Like the lungs, each time inhalation (or air intake) occurs, the alveoli expand to capture more oxygen, which prevents the collision between alveoli in this process is pulmonary surfactant.
