Pulmonary and systemic circulation recap and the functions of veins, arteries and capillaries.

If you took all of the blood vessels out of an average child, and laid them out in one line, the line would be over 60,000 miles long! An adult's vessels would be closer to 100,000 miles long!

Pulmonary circulation and systemic circulation is shown on this diagram.

Remember pulmonary circulation is the circulation between the heart and lungs.

Systemic circulation is around the body.

The circulation in humans, and other mammals, is a closed loop of tubes that run in a continuous figure of "8" centred on the heart. The heart is the pump that keeps the blood flowing. This is called a "double circulation" system: one loop carries blood around the lungs . The blood is carried to the lungs in the pulmonary arteries and returns in the pulmonary veins. The other loop supplies blood at high pressure to the head and body. The main artery from the heart is the aorta. It branches to carry blood to the head and body. The blood returns to the heart in the vena cava.

Arteries carry blood away from the heart and deal with blood that has a high pressure.

Veins carry blood flowing back toward the heart, they deal with low pressure blood.

High pressure blood in arteries means they have to be much more elastic. They have thick muscular walls to deal with the pressure increase every time the heart beats. Veins carry blood that has come from lots of capillaries in the working muscles. This is low pressure so the walls are not as thick and they are not as stretchy.

Veins have one way valves so that the blood can travel up your legs and not pool in your feet.
Capillaries walls are so small that they are only one cell thick and the diameter of a red blood cell.

Arteries
Carry blood

Capillaries from arteries to veins low

very thin and leaky - one cell thick exchanging nutrients and gases with cells

Veins
towards the heart

away from the heart high

thick and muscular with elastic fibres oxyge nated (except pulmonary artery)

Pressure Walls are Blood is:

very low thin

de-oxygenated (except pulmonary vein)

Pulse:

Strong

none

none

For each statement decide if the answer is VEIN, ATERY or CAPILLARY.

Question 1

Look at each of the descriptions below and decide whether they relate to veins, arteries or capillaries. Make your choice using the buttons then press the 'Show answers' button to see how you got on.

Oxygen and glucose move out into the tissues The walls are under a lot of pressure

Carbon dioxide is picked up and dissolves in the plasma Contains valves to stop the backflow of blood The blood flows very quickly

A cross section of blood vessels showing the thickness of their walls.

What are capillaries? Capillaries are extremely small vessels located within the tissues of the body that transport blood from the arteries to the veins. Capillary walls are thin and are composed of endothelium (a single layer of overlapping flat cells). Oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients and wastes are exchanged through the thin walls of the capillaries. Capillary Size Capillaries are so small that red blood cells can only travel through them in single file. 5-10 microns in diameter.

Arteries Arteries carry oxygen-rich blood from your heart to the tissues and organs in your body, like your brain, kidneys, and liver. Because they carry blood with oxygen, arteries appear red. Blood flows through arteries with great force. So the walls of arteries are thick and flexible. The thicker walls help protect the arteries against damage from the high pressure. Arteries get smaller and smaller as they get farther from your heart. At their smallest point, arteries become capillaries.

Capillaries Capillaries connect arteries to veins. As the tiniest blood vessels, capillaries carry blood to and from every cell in your body. In an adult body, that means trillions of cells. Capillary walls are so thin that oxygen and nutrients can pass right through them into your body's cells. Waste products and carbon dioxide from the cells can also pass through the walls of capillaries back into your bloodstream. Veins Capillaries get larger and larger as they leave each cell and quickly become veins. Veins carry the oxygen-poor blood back to your heart. Because they carry blood without oxygen, veins appear blue. The walls of veins are much thinner than artery wallsthey don't have to be as thick because blood flows through veins at a lower pressure.

Assignment 4. Look at the title on the web Find diagrams of systemic circulation and explain Find diagrams of pulmonary circulation and explain Use inspiration or another flow diagram to produce a means of describing the blood flow around the heart. Remember to include the different blood vessels and their jobs. You will have your next classroom lesson to work on this assignment.