Question

Lance Armstrong is again busy trying to win another race by taking the hormone EPO. This results in a doubling of his number of red blood cells. He also is breathing from a tank of 100% oxygen even before he begins the race. Draw the equilibration curve that results when blood courses through the capillaries of his alveolus, starting at the beginning just before the blood gets to the alveolus and continuing until the blood exits the capillary at the end of the alveolus.

Answer 1

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a hormone produced by the kidney. Erythropoietin promotes the formation of red blood cells by the bone marrow. The erythropoietin hormone level can be detected and measured in the blood (the EPO test).

The normal range for EPO levels can vary from 3.7 to 36 international units per liter (IU/L). Higher-than-normal levels may mean you have anemia. In severe cases of anemia, EPO levels in the blood may be a thousand times higher than normal. Unusually low levels may be because of polycythemia vera.