Created at 4:40 p.m. Jul, 07, 2026
Author:
angus.dewar
Type of change:
Updated content
Rationale for change
Added γ subunit to the cloze, which was taken directly from the extra field.
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This is why fetal hemoglobin, which has a gamma γ subunit instead, has a greater affinity for O2 than adult hemoglobin.
Photo credit: Diberri (talk) (Uploads), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At all partial pressures, fetal hemoglobin has a greater affinity for oxygen. This makes sure that oxygen travels from the mother's blood via the placenta to the fetus.
Due to the high metabolic rate associated with fetal growth rates, the pO2 in fetal tissues is quite low.
Despite having a stronger affinity for oxygen in such a low partial pressure environment of the fetal tissue, fetal hemoglobin readily unloads oxygen.
Photo credit: Diberri (talk) (Uploads), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At all partial pressures, fetal hemoglobin has a greater affinity for oxygen. This makes sure that oxygen travels from the mother's blood via the placenta to the fetus.
Due to the high metabolic rate associated with fetal growth rates, the pO2 in fetal tissues is quite low.
Despite having a stronger affinity for oxygen in such a low partial pressure environment of the fetal tissue, fetal hemoglobin readily unloads oxygen.
At birth, adult-type hemoglobin replaces the fetal hemoglobin.
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