The lymph Is a slightly alkaline fluid that functions as an interstitial fluid in the human body, that is, it flows in the empty space between one cell and another.
The lymph is channeled into the lymphatic vessels, through which it can flow and eventually return to the bloodstream.
In this line, one of the functions of lymph is to help clean the body cells, collecting wastes and infectious or potentially harmful organisms.
This fluid is part of the blood and therefore coagulable. It travels both through the lymphatic vessels and through the veins, contributing to the exchange of nutrients between the tissues of the body and the blood.
In turn, some large molecules metabolized in the liver can only pass into the bloodstream through the lymph because the lymphatic vessels have larger pores than the blood vessels.
There is a type of lymph known as a pound that specializes in transporting fats from the intestine to the bloodstream. Unlike the other crystalline lymph localized in the rest of the body, it has a whitish appearance due to the presence of fatty acids. (Vorvick, 2016).
In general, the lymph is not exclusive to humans. This liquid can also be found in any mammal, with a similar composition and fulfilling the same functions that it fulfills in the body of the human being.
Training and recovery of lymph
In order to be able to move the blood through the arteries and veins, the heart must apply some pressure to each beat. This pressure is transmitted through the arteries to the capillaries, which are porous vessels with very thin walls where oxygen, nutrients and fluids are transported to the body's cells.
To the extent that fluids leak through the capillaries, they seep into surrounding tissues, becoming interstitial fluids.
Thus, these fluids are recovered again by the capillaries and back to the bloodstream. This is done to prevent the space between cells from flooding and the concentration of blood in the arteries and veins being too high due to the constant loss of fluids.
There are other vessels known as lymphatic capillaries that are located saltonically between the blood capillaries. These vessels are small porous tubules that are responsible for channeling lymphatic fluids.
The pressure in the lymphatic vessels is less than in the blood vessels and surrounding tissues. For this reason, the fluid that leaks from the blood tends to enter the lymphatic capillaries.
As the blood vessels join to form venules and veins that are responsible for returning blood to the heart, the lymphatic capillaries are progressively joined to form larger lymphatic vessels. These are responsible for transporting the lymph from the tissues to the center of the body.
The entire lymph of the body eventually returns to one or two of the channels located in the upper body.
Thus, the thoracic ducts are responsible for collecting the lymph coming from the legs, intestine and internal organs.
Thus, as the thoracic duct rises up the chest, it collects the lymph contained in the organs of the thorax, the left arm and the left side of the head and neck (Olszewski, 1985).
For its part, the right lymphatic duct is responsible for collecting lymph from the right side of the chest, the right arm and the right side of the head and neck.
In this sense, both the thoracic and right lymphatic duct converge in the bloodstream, where the jugular veins of the head and the subclavian arms and veins join in the upper chest.
Lymph composition
The lymph contains several substances, including proteins, salts, glucose, fats, water and white cells. Unlike blood, lymph normally does not contain Red blood cells , But is coagulable once it comes into contact with the bloodstream.
The composition of the lymph varies widely depending on the location of the body in which it originates. In the lymphatic vessels of the arms and legs, the lymph is crystalline and its chemical composition is similar to that of blood plasma. However, lymph differs from plasma, since they contain less protein (Drinker & Field, 1933).
The lymph that is in the intestines is of whitish appearance, due to the presence of fatty acids that are absorbed of the foods.
This mixture of lymph and fat is known as kilo. There are special lymphatic vessels located around the intestine called lacteal vessels that are responsible for collecting the kilo. The lacteals drain the pound and store it in a reservoir in the lower part of the thoracic duct known as the chyle cistern.
The lymph flows through the lymphatic vessels and passes through the lymph nodes. The human body has up to 600 lymph nodes in the form of small beans, distributed strategically and salmon throughout the body.
The lymph nodes are responsible for filtering out bacteria, cancer cells and other possible harmful agents to the body that are contained in the lymph (Harrington, Kroft, & Olteanu, 2013). An alteration of the lymph can produce lymphatic cancer .
Functions of lymph
Intermediate in the transportation of oxygen, foods, proteins and hormones
Its interaction occurs between the cells present in all tissues of the body, to which it distributes its content and later takes the carbon dioxide and other residues of the metabolic process contained in them, taking the blood and later to the circulatory system.
Keeps body cells hydrated
The lymph is responsible for keeping the body's cells hydrated and destroying any microorganism or external agent that tries to attack the lymph nodes.
In addition, it performs the function of transporting antibodies from the lymph nodes to other organs that may be affected by an infectious process. In this sense, lymph plays a fundamental role for the body's immune system.
Carries fat and soluble vitamins
In the case of kilo, lymph fulfills the important task of transporting fat and fat soluble vitamins.
The lymphatic capillaries present in the Intestinal villi Are called lacteals, and are responsible for the absorption and transport of fat contained in the kilo.
Carries to carry protein macromolecules to the blood
Lymph also leads to blood macromolecules of plasma proteins synthesized in liver cells and hormones produced in the endocrine glands.
These liver molecules could not pass through the narrow pores of the blood capillaries, but they may seep through the lymphatic capillaries to reach the blood.
Maintains adequate blood volume
Another important function of lymph is to maintain stable blood volume. When this volume is reduced in the vascular system, the lymph hurries from the lymphatic system to the vascular system to increase it again and regulate it (Kumar, 2012).
Related bodies
The organs that make up the lymphatic system are divided into two groups, one of primary organs and the other of secondary organs.
Primary organs
- Thymus: This lymphoid organ is the most important of the body's immune system. It is composed of two lobes and is located between the heart and the trachea. During the first months of life, its size is large in proportion to the rest of the body and other organs. However, once sexual maturity is attained its size reduces.
Its main function is to form the white cells that make up the lymph, called T cells. These are responsible for identifying any agent harmful to the body and eliminating it.
- Bone Marrow: Marrow is the soft material located in the bone cavities. It is a network of connective tissue, fibers, fat cells, blood vessels and blood-producing cells; therefore, the marrow is responsible for producing both red and white cells, including the lymphocytes that make up the lymph.
Both the T cells and B cells contained in the lymph, occur in the marrow. Young T cells move to the thymus to maturity and B cells remain in the marrow during their maturation process until they are released and take their place in the lymphatic system.
B cells are white blood cells sensitive to antigens and their function within the lymph is to produce antibodies to fight them. An antigen can be any chemical that produces an immune system response. The most common antigens are toxins, external proteins, particulate matter and microorganisms such as viruses and bacteria.
B cells are memory cells, that is, if they ever have to fight an antigen, they store information related to it. In this way, if they have to fight the antigen again, they already know how to do it and release antibodies more quickly.
Secondary organs
Secondary organs related to lymph include lymphatic vessels, lymph nodes, lymphoid tissue aggregates and spleen.
These organs are responsible for three main functions: absorbing fat transported in the lymph, regulating lymph fluids and serving as agents of the body's immune system (Smith & Foster, 2017).
References
- Drinker, C.K., & Field, M. E. (1933). Lymphatics, Lymph and Tissue Fluid. Oakland: Williams & Wilkins.
- Harrington, A., Kroft, S. H., & Olteanu, H. (2013). Lymph Nodes. New York: Bradford and Bigelow.
- Kumar, P. (February 24, 2012). Preserve Articles . Retrieved from"What are the Functions of Lymph?: preservearticles.com.
- Olszewski, W. (1985). Peripheral Lymph: Formation and Immune Function. Michigan: CRC Press.
- Smith, D., & Foster, D. (2017). Pet Education . Retrieved from"Lymphatic System Anatomy and Function: peteducation.com".
- com. (September 6, 2015). Study.com . Retrieved from What is a Lymph? - Definition & Anatomy: study.com
- Vorvick, L. J. (September 3, 2016). Medline Plus . Retrieved from Lymph system: medlineplus.gov.