6.2 The Blood System Flashcards
Relatively (to the wall) small lumen maintains
high blood pressure (BP)
Thick muscular wall and fibrous outer layer help…
the artery to withstand high BP
Muscle contracts to decrease the size of the lumen →
increase BP and therefore maintains high BP between heart beats.
Elastic fibres stretch to increase the lumen with each pulse of blood. After…
the pulse of blood passes the fibres recoil decreasing the lumen size to maintain high BP (vasoconstriction)
Tunica externa:
A tough outer layer of connective tissue.
Tunica media:
A thick layer of smooth muscle and elastic fibres made of the protein elastin.
Tunica intima:
A smooth endothelium forming the lining of the artery.
The walls of capillaries consist of…
a single layer of endothelial cells, coated by a filter like protein gel (lamina) with pores between the cells. This allows the capillary to be semi-permeable.
Because permeability is high, part of the plasma can leak out into tissues, allowing for…
the movement of O2, CO2, glucose and other substances into/out of tissues. Proteins and amino acids are not able to move through capillaries.
Massive number of capillaries —>
large surface area available for the exchange of substances
Veins
return blood to the heart for recirculation.
The large lumen means..
that the blood is under low BP.
Because there is less BP to resist,
the walls of the veins are thinner and less elastic than arteries. They also contain less muscle than the arteries.
purpose of valves
required to prevent backflow of the blood and therefore ensure that the blood moves towards to heart.
purpose of skeletal muscles
when surrounding skeletal muscle contracts, it squeezes the vein, pushing blood in one direction.
William Harvey discovery
Blood flow is unidirectional with valves to prevent backflow
Flow rate of blood too high for blood to be “consumed” – must be recycled
Heart pumps blood out in the arteries and it returns through the veins
Predicted presence of small blood vessels that connect arteries and veins
Double circulation
blood passes through the heart twice on one circuit of the body
Pulmonary circulation
to/from the lungs
Systemic circulation
to/from the rest of the body
Key components of double circulation is that…
the oxygenated and deoxygenated blood do not mix and that blood flows only in one direction
Atrium
receives blood from lungs/body