Describe and explain the function of the cardiovascular system
Test your knowledge of the cardiovascular system by answering the following questions. If you get stuck on any of them, you'll find the answers in the article below.
1. The heart contains ________ chambers.
2. __________ in the lungs allow the blood to take up oxygen.
3. Blood from the lungs enters the heart by the ________ atrium.
4. Blood makes up ____ % of the overall body weight.
5. Blood circulates around the body after leaving the heart from the ________ ventricle.
6. Veins carry oxygenated blood, while _________ carry de-oxygenated blood.
7. Haemoglobin absorbs _________ and _______ ________.
8. ____________ in the blood produce antibodies to fight infection.
(If that was easy, see how you get on with the main cardiovascular systems quizzes).
Describe and explain the function of the cardiovascular system
The cardiovascular system is part of the circulatory system (the other part is the lymphatic system). It consists of the heart, the blood vessels (veins, arteries, and capillaries), and the blood.
The heart is a four-chambered muscular organ which, through a two-part contraction, pumps oxygen and nutrient rich blood around the body. The small, thinly walled capillaries in the lungs allow the blood to take up oxygen, which is then carried through the venules then the veins and into the left atrium of the heart via the pulmonary veins. Once it is full, it contracts to push the blood into the left ventricle, which in turn contracts to push the blood out through the aorta from where the oxygenated blood is spread throughout the body. The blood then returns to the right atrium, and then the right ventricle, of the heart, through the inferior and superior vena cavae arteries (from the lower and upper body respectively). When the heart contracts again, the blood is pumped back to the lungs to be re-oxygenated.
The function of the cardiovascular system is to feed the body tissues with the nutrients, oxygen, and hormones that are carried in the blood as it circulates through the body, to help in the bodies protection system, and also to take away waste products that have been produced. It is also involved in temperature regulation. The blood itself, which makes up 5% of the body weight, is composed of a watery fluid called plasma and several specialised cells :
- erythrocytes (red cells, containing haemoglobin which absorbs oxygen and carbon dioxide),
- leukocytes (white cells, which ingest invading bacteria),
- thrombocytes (platelets, involved in clotting to reduce and stop bleeding, and in preventing infection),
- lymphocytes (which produce antibodies to fight infection),
- and monocytes (which digest micro-organisms).
The plasma also contains salts, nutrients, gases, antibodies and antitoxins, and waste products.
Reference : Human Physiology - Silverthorn (Amazon link)
Resources :
In this section we've added a few alternative study aids to help you along.
- Articles - Here you'll find a range of short articles on basic anatomy and physiology topics, complete with a few 'test yourself' questions for each one.
- Images and pdf's - Just in case you get tired of looking at the screen we've provided images and pdf files that you can print out and use for 'off-line' practice.
- Word Roots - When you learn the word roots, prefixes and suffixes contained within anatomical and medical terms, you can often work out what they mean. This can be a useful skill as you progress in your studies, so we've provided a dictionary to help you!
- Games - Finally in the resources section, we've added some simple games to make anatomy and physiology practice a little bit more fun.