Red+Blood+Cells+-+DV

=Function of Red Blood Cells= Red blood cells move around throughout the body to pick up oxygen. The red blood cells bring the oxygen to the places in the body the need it like the heart and lungs. toc =Movement of Red Blood Cells= Red blood cells cannot move on their own. They move in a substance called **plasma** (A liquid found throughout the body). The flow of the plasma pushes around red blood cells. Red blood cells find plasma flowing and have it push them throughout the body. This plasma helps red blood cells get to where they need to go in the body. =Red Blood Cells and oxygen= Red blood cells have a substance on them called **hemoglobin** (A substance made out of iron that attracts oxygen to it). This substance has special particles in it that attract oxygen to it. This allows red blood cells to pick up and move oxygen wherever they need to in the body like the heart and lungs. Also once oxygen is attached to a red blood cell it does not come off until the red blood cell releases it.

=Red Blood Cells Nucleus or None= Not all red blood cells have a **nucleus** (Heart of a cell). All young red blood cells have a nucleus, but mature red blood cells have no nucleus. This is because mature red blood cells do not need to reproduce. This is because red blood cells are produced by bone marrow and do not reproduce on their own. Also young red blood cells have a nucleus because they are still fresh and new, but over time their nucleus will slowly go away. When a red blood cell matures it doesn't need a nucleus because they will be produced by bone marrow. =Lifespan of Red Blood Cells= Red blood cells live up to 120 days. This is good because every 120 days all of those red blood cell that were produced die. This is good because it means there is never too many red blood cells in your body. Also over 1 million red blood cells are produced every day meaning if 1 million red blood cells in your body die you will still have millions more in your body. This is bad because if you only have 1 million red blood cells in your body and they all die you could have to go to the hospital to get a blood transfusion. Also if your bone marrow isn’t producing enough red blood cells you will have to go to the doctor immediately to figure out why that is happening. It is also good because if you have too many red blood cells in your body at a time (for example 1,000,000,000). =References=

Blood Ancient Lights, 1995. Full Video. Discovery Education. Web. 19 December 2014. . Encyclopaedia Britannica. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2015. . The Franklin Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2015. . Padilla, Michael J. Prentice Hall Science Explorer. Teacher’s ed. Needham: Pearson Prentice Hall,, 2005. Print. Red Blood cell. Collective-evolution. Collective Evoloution, n.d. Web. 19 Dec. 2014. . “Red Blood Cells.” KidsHealth. Nemours, 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. .