Which of the following fluids belongs to the transcellular compartment of total body water?

• A Lymph
• B Interstitial fluid
• C Plasma
• D Synovial fluid ✓

Explanation

Transcellular fluid is the specialized portion of extracellular fluid separated from plasma not merely by capillary endothelium but by an epithelial cell layer, and it includes cerebrospinal, intraocular, synovial, pericardial, pleural and peritoneal fluids plus gastrointestinal secretions. Together these amount to only 1 to 2 liters in adults. Interstitial fluid and lymph communicate freely with plasma across fenestrated capillaries and constitute the ordinary interstitial compartment, so they are excluded. Examiners favor synovial and cerebrospinal fluid as the classic examples of this smallest ECF subdivision.

Reference: Guyton and Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology, 14th ed.

High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP

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