Body Fluids & Water

BY :AMAILA QAISAR
M.Phil MICROBIOLOGY (UHS,LAHORE)
COURSE CODE: 301
COURSE TITLE: BIOCHEMISTRY 1
COURSE CODE: MLBC-513
SEMESTER: 1st
What are Body fluids?
 Human body contain water
 Water of the body together with its dissolved solute is
called body fluids
 The distribution of total body water is :
 Muscles- 50%
 Skin- 20%
 Blood- 10%
 Other Organs- 20%
Total body water depends upon:
 Age
 Gender
 Degree of obesity/ fat content
• Water is the predominant chemical component of living organisms.
• Its unique physical properties, which include the ability to solvate a wide range
of organic and inorganic molecules, derive from water's dipolar structure and
exceptional capacity for forming hydrogen bonds.
• The manner in which water interacts with a solvated biomolecule influences the
structure of each.
• Water has a slight propensity to dissociate into hydroxide ions and protons.
Water and life

• Water is the solvent of life. Undoubtedly, water is more

important than any other single compound to life. It is involved in
several body functions.
• Functions of water
1. Water provides the aqueous medium to the organism which is
essential for the various biochemical reactions to occur.
2. Water directly participates as a reactant in several metabolic
reactions.
3. It serves as a vehicle for transport of solutes.
4. Water is closely associated with the regulation of body temperature.
• An excellent nucleophile, water is a reactant or product in
many metabolic reactions.
Distribution of water

• Water is the major body constituent.

• An adult human contains about 60% water (men 55–70%, women 45–
60%).
• The women and obese individuals have relatively less water which is
due to the higher content of stored fat in an anhydrous form.
• A 70 kg normal man contains about 42 litres of water.
• This is distributed in intracellular (inside the cells 28l) and extracellular
(outside the cells 14l) compartments, respectively known as
intracellular fluid (ICF) and extracellular fluid (ECF).
• The ECF is further divided into interstitial fluid (10.5l) and plasma
(3.5l).
Water balance:
• Daily intake of water
 Fluid ingested( liquid/ water in diet)= 2100ml
 From metabolism= 200ml
 Net intake= 2300ml

Daily output of water

 Insensible (skin)= 350ml
 Insensible (lungs)= 350ml
 Sweat= 100ml
 Feces= 100ml
 Urine= 1400ml
 Net output= 2300ml
Factor affecting water balance:

Thirst Condition of Temperature

mechanism kidney and humidity

Electrolyte
Endocrine Hypothalamu
and water
glands s
balance

Diet
Types of water balance:
Positive water Negative water
balance balance

Growing Vomiting and

period diarrhea

Pregnancy Burns

Recovery from
Excessive salvation
disease

Liver damage No intake of water

Hypothyroidism Hypofunction of adrenal glands

Drug intake Diseased condition

Change of dietary habit

Normal composition of body fluids
constit plasm Intersti Intracel
uent a tial lular
fluids fluids
Na 142 145 12

K 4 4.1 150

Ca 1-2 1-2 10.6

Mg 0.75- 2 2
1.5
Cl 103 113 4

Protein 60 1 25

sulphate 1 1 20

HCO3 25 27 12
Types of body fluids:

Extracellular fluids Intracellular fluids

The intracellular fluid pertains to the

internal fluid located within the
cell(s).
Body fluid that is not
contained in cells. The intracellular fluid, in turn, is
composed of water dissolved ions,
and other molecules. The
intracellular fluid pertains to the
cytosol(s) of the cell.
It is found in blood, in lymph, in
body cavities lined with serous
(moisture-exuding) membrane, in The cytosol is the part of a cell where
the cellular organelles are
the cavities and channels of the
suspended.
brain and spinal cord, and in
muscular and other body tissues.
Transcellular fluid:
• Specialized ECF or another small compartment of fluid.
• It is a fluid separated from plasma by epithelium
• These compartment includes:
 Synovial fluid
 Peritoneal fluid
 Pericardial fluid
 Intraocular fluid
 Cerebrospinal fluid
Composition and function of ecf
Composition: electrolyte, glucose, fatty acid, amino acid,
chemical messenger, oxygen, other nutrients like urea
Functions:

Provide nutrient to cells

Remove metabolic waste material

Bring cell hormones

Buffering system
Composition and function of ICF
Composition: electrolyte, protein, cholesterol,
phospholipid, neutral fat
Functions:

Provide nutrient within the cells

Chemical reaction

Buffering system

Lysosomal activity
Water turnover and balance
• The body possesses tremendous capacity to regulate its water
content.
• In a healthy individual, this is achieved by balancing the daily water
intake and water output.
• Water intake Water is supplied to the body by exogenous and
endogenous sources.
Exogenous water
• Ingested water and beverages, water content of solid foods-constitute
the exogenous source of water.
• Water intake is highly variable which may range from 0.5–5 litres.
• It largely depends on the social habits and climate.
• In general, people living in hot climate drink more water.
• Ingestion of water is mainly controlled by a thirst centre located in the
hypothalamus.
• Increase in the osmolality of plasma causes increased water intake by
stimulating thirst centre.
Endogenous water
• The metabolic water produced within the body is the endogenous
water.
• This water (300–350 ml/day) is derived from the oxidation of
foodstuffs.
• It is estimated that 1 g each of carbohydrate, protein and fat,
respectively, yield 0.6 ml, 0.4 ml and 1.1 ml of water.
• On an average, about 125 ml of water is generated for 1,000 Cal
consumed by the body.
Water output
• Water losses from the body are variable.
• There are four distinct routes for the elimination of water from the
body—urine, skin, lungs and feces.
Urine
• This is the major route for water loss from the body.
• In a healthy individual, the urine output is about 1–2 l/day.
• Water loss through kidneys although highly variable, is well regulated
to meet the body demands—to get rid of water or to retain.
• It should, however, be remembered that man cannot completely shut
down urine production, despite there being no water intake.
• This is due to the fact that some amount of water (about 500 ml/day)
is essential as the medium to eliminate the waste products from the
body.
Hormonal regulation of urine
production
About 180 litres of water is filtered by the glomeruli into the renal
tubules everyday.

However, most of this is reabsorbed and only 1–2 litres is excreted as

urine.

Water excretion by the kidney is tightly controlled by vasopressin also

known as antidiuretic hormone (ADH) of the posterior pituitary gland.

The secretion of ADH is regulated by the osmotic pressure of plasma.

An increase in osmolality promotes ADH secretion that leads to an

increased water reabsorption from the renal tubules (less urine output).
On the other hand, a decrease in osmolality suppresses ADH secretion
that results in reduced water reabsorption from the renal tubules (more
urine output).

Plasma osmolality is largely dependent on the sodium concentration,

hence sodium indirectly controls the amount of water in the body.

Diabetes insipidus is a disorder characterized by the deficiency of ADH

which results in an increased loss of water from the body.
Skin
• Loss of water (450 ml/day) occurs through the body surface by
perspiration.
• This is an unregulated process by the body which mostly depends on
the atmospheric temperature and humidity.
• The loss is more in hot climate. Fever causes increased water loss
through the skin.
• It is estimated that for every 1°C rise in body temperature, about 15%
increase is observed in the loss of water (through skin).
Lungs
• During respiration, some amount of water (about 400 ml/day) is lost
through the expired air.
• The latter is saturated with water and expelled from the body. In hot
climates and/or when the person is suffering from fever, the water
loss through lungs is increased.
• The loss of water by perspiration (via skin) and respiration (via lungs)
is collectively referred to as insensible water loss.
Feces
• Most of the water entering the gastrointestinal tract is reabsorbed by
the intestine.
• About 150 ml/day is lost through feces in a healthy individual.
• Fecal loss of water is tremendously increased in diarrhea.
• It may be noted that water balance of the body is regulated
predominantly by controlling the urine output.
• This happens after an obligatory water loss via skin, lungs and feces.