Acid-Base Balance in Animals

Acid-base balance in
animals
Sugiharto, Ph.D.
Brainstorming……………….
• pH ……………?
• Acid …………..?
• Base ………….?
pH of blood
• Blood is normally slightly basic, with a normal pH range of 7.35 to
7.45
• The body maintains the pH of blood close to 7.40
• How to determine the pH of blood in animals………..???
pH of blood
• Blood acidity increases when the
• Level of acidic compounds in the body rises (through increased intake or
production, or decreased elimination)
• Level of basic (alkaline) compounds in the body falls (through decreased
intake or production, or increased elimination)
• Blood alkalinity increases when the level of acid in the body
decreases or when the level of base increases.
Control of acid-base balance
• The body's balance between acidity and alkalinity is referred to as acid-
base balance
• The blood's acid-base balance is precisely controlled because even a minor
deviation from the normal range can severely affect many organs
• The body uses different mechanisms to control the blood's acid-base
balance
• These mechanisms to control the blood's acid-base balance involve the
• Lungs
• Kidneys
• Buffer systems
Role of the lungs in acid-base balance
• One mechanism the body uses to control blood pH involves the
release of carbon dioxide from the lungs
• Carbon dioxide (waste product of metabolism) is mildly acidic
• Carbon dioxide passes from the cells into the blood (in order to be exhaled by
the lungs)
• As carbon dioxide accumulates in the blood, the pH of the blood decreases
(acidity increases)
Role of the lungs in acid-base balance
• The brain regulates the amount of carbon dioxide that is exhaled by
controlling the speed and depth of breathing (ventilation)
• The amount of carbon dioxide exhaled, and consequently the pH of
the blood, increases as breathing becomes faster and deeper
• By adjusting the speed and depth of breathing, the brain and lungs
are able to regulate the blood pH minute by minute.
Role of the kidneys in acid-base balance
• The kidneys are able to affect blood pH by excreting excess acids or
bases
• The kidneys have some ability to alter the amount of acid or base that is
excreted, but because the kidneys make these adjustments more slowly than
the lungs do, this compensation generally takes several days
Buffer systems in acid-base balance
• Chemical buffer systems guard against sudden shifts in acidity and
alkalinity
• The pH buffer systems are combinations of the body's own naturally
occurring weak acids and weak bases. These weak acids and bases
exist in pairs that are in balance under normal pH conditions.
• The pH buffer systems work chemically to minimize changes in the pH
of a solution by adjusting the proportion of acid and base.
Buffer systems in acid-base balance
• The most important pH buffer system in the blood involves carbonic
acid (a weak acid formed from the carbon dioxide dissolved in blood)
and bicarbonate ions (the corresponding weak base)
Types of acid-base disorders
• There are two abnormalities of acid-base balance
• Acidosis: The blood has too much acid (or too little base), resulting in
a decrease in blood pH
• Alkalosis: The blood has too much base (or too little acid), resulting in
an increase in blood pH
Types of acid-base disorders
Acidosis and alkalosis are categorized depending on their primary
cause:
• Metabolic acidosis and metabolic alkalosis are caused by an
imbalance in the production of acids or bases and their excretion by
the kidneys
• Respiratory acidosis and respiratory alkalosis are caused by changes
in carbon dioxide exhalation due to lung or breathing disorders
Compensation for acid-base disorders
• Each acid-base disturbance provokes automatic compensatory
mechanisms that push the blood pH back towards normal
• In general, the respiratory system compensates for metabolic
disturbances while metabolic mechanisms compensate for respiratory
disturbances
• At first, the compensatory mechanisms may restore the pH close to
normal. Thus, if the blood pH has changed significantly, it means that
the body's ability to compensate is failing
Environmental effect on acid-base balance
• Acid-base balance of any animal is influenced by a range of functional
and environmental stressors
• The pattern of change depends upon the effects of these stressors on
the condition and rate of metabolism, respiration, and the
mechanism of H+ equivalent exchange
• Hyperthermia causes increased body temperature and respiratory
rate, along with a decrease in blood partial pressure of carbon dioxide
(pCO2)
• The decrease in pCO2 results in changes in acid-base balance leading
to respiratory alkalosis
• Cows in heat stress often experience a respiratory alkalosis, resulting
from hyper-ventilation
• Compensation results in urinary bicarbonate loss in an attempt to
balance the ratio of carbonic acid to bicarbonate in the blood
Mineral balance in animals
Sugiharto, Ph.D.
Environmental effect on mineral balance
• The electrolyte body changes resulted from heat stress can lead to a
negative mineral balance as a consequence of the decrease in
nutrient ingestion and the increase in mineral excretion
• Heat stress  reduces feed intake
• Heat stress  increase in respiration and perspiration causing an excessive
loss of water, thereby reducing mineral levels
Environmental effect on mineral balance
• Alkalosis due to heat stress can decrease the availability of minerals
• Respiratory alkalosis causes a reduced competition between H+ and K+ for
urinary excretion, thus increasing K+ loss in the urine
• In birds with alkalosis, blood concentrations of the electrolytes (Na+, K+) are
decreased

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