What type of fluid carries nutrients from the blood to the cells and removes waste?

The correct answer is interstitial fluid. This type of fluid is found in the spaces between cells in tissues and serves a crucial role in the exchange of nutrients and waste products. Interstitial fluid is derived from plasma, which leaks out of blood vessels into the tissues. It carries essential nutrients such as oxygen and glucose from the blood to the cells, allowing them to function properly. Additionally, it collects waste products from the cells, transporting them back to the blood for removal by the body's excretory systems.

While plasma is a component of blood that contains water, nutrients, hormones, and proteins, it stays within the circulatory system and does not directly interact with cells in the same way that interstitial fluid does. Serum, on the other hand, is the liquid part of blood after coagulation, lacking clotting factors. Lymph, although it does circulate nutrients and waste similar to interstitial fluid, primarily functions to transport immune cells and remove excess fluids from tissues, making it a separate but related component of the body’s fluid system. Thus, interstitial fluid is specifically responsible for the direct exchange of nutrients and waste at the cellular level, validating its position as the correct answer.