Question | Answer |
Artery | A blood vessel that carries blood away from the heart |
Atrioventricular (AV) valve | A valve located in between the atrium and ventricle. Prevents backflow of blood from ventricle to atrium |
Atrium | Superior heart chambers – right or left |
Capillary | The smallest and most common blood vessel type. Gas and nutrient exchange occurs across the walls of the capillaries |
Chordae tendinae | Small chord like tendons that act to open and close the AV valves |
Lumen | The inner space of a blood vessel (or other tubular structure) |
Mediastinum | Central cavity located in the thorax, contains the heart, thymus and large blood vessels |
Papillary muscle | Small cone shaped muscles that act to open and close the AV valves |
Parietal pericardium | Part of the serous pericardium, the outer membrane lining the fibrous pericardium |
Pericardium | The heart is located within the pericardium, which consists of the outer fibrous pericardium and the inner serous pericardium |
Pulmonary circulation | The system of blood vessels carrying blood from the right ventricle of the heart to the lungs and back to the left atrium |
Semilunar valve | Small cup like valves located in the pulmonary trunk (right) and aorta (left) |
Systemic circulation | The system of blood vessels that carries blood from the left ventricle of the heart to the tissues of the body and back to the right atrium |
Vein | A blood vessel that carries blood towards the heart |
Ventricle | Inferior heart chambers – right or left |
Visceral pericardium | Part of the serous pericardium, the inner membrane lining the heart itself. |
Arrhythmia, characterised by sensations including racing, thumping, or ___ of heart that can occur during exercise, whilst consuming caffeine/ nicotine, or in ____.
Implemented, electrical system, skipping beats, stressful situations | Skipping beats
Stressful situations |
Arrhythmia can develop from blockages or irregularity in signals of the heart’s _. To treat arrhythmia, medical devices such as artificial pacemakers or can be _. These devices are surgically-implanted in the chest.
-Implemented, electrical system | Electrical system
Implemented |
Cardiomyopathy is a life threatening heart condition which causes the ______ to become gradually ___resulting in the insufficient supply of blood around the body.
-Heart muscle, weaker | Heart muscle
Weaker |
Symptoms of cardiomyopathy include __ tiredness, and accumulation of ___ in legs and abdomen. Can reduce the risk of further heart complications by adopting __ such as exercising.
breathlessness, fluid, lifestyle changes | breathlessness
fluid
lifestyle changes |
Pulse points? | Bracheal, radial, carotid, facial. |
How do you define ‘pulse’? | The pressure caused by the ejection of blood from the left ventricle.
This pressure travels along the arteries in your body to create pulse points at different parts of the body. |
Why do you have pulse points on certain parts of the body but not others? i.e .what makes a pulse point? | Pulse points are areas where large arteries in the body are closer to the skin’s surface i.e. more superficial. |
Why do you think it not advised to use the thumb to take a pulse? | The thumb has a pulse |
How do you work out your Cardiac Output (CO)? | Cardiac Output (mls/min) = Heart Rate (beat/min) x Stroke Volume (mls/beat). |
Did the heart rate, and consequently the cardiac output, change from resting to the 2 minutes
after the exercise had started period? | Most students would have seen HR and CO increase |
Did the heart rate and consequently the cardiac output change from resting to the immediately
after the exercise is completed and the 1 and 5 minutes post exercise period? | Most students would have seen HR and CO increase then almost or completely return to
normal by the 5 mins period |
Why do we need to increase cardiac output with exercise? | To supply the cells (skeletal and cardiac muscle), which are working a lot harder than they were
at rest, with the extra oxygen and nutrients they need, and to remove wastes |
During exercise the contracting muscles in the body compress the blood vessels and cause blood to flow more rapidly towards the heart. What affect do you think this will have on stroke? | Increases SV. Muscles particularly in the lower limbs are working harder and increasing venous return, which increases SV and CO. More blood goes into the heart, whilst at the same time the heart is contracting more forcefully. |
Throughout your experiment you used a SV of 70mls/beat to calculate the CO. Do you think this will be an accurate representation of the CO during the experiment and during the post-exercise period? | No, SV will increase with exercise. Thus, using the same SV for both conditions will NOT give accurate results |
Artery vs. Vein. (Artery) | Carries blood from heart towards lung. Thick compared to lumen. Round. Carry deoxygenated blood in pulmonary system. Carries oxygenated blood from heart into systemic circulation. |
Artery vs. vein. (Vein) | Carries blood towards heart and away from lungs. thin compared to lumen. Flat. Carries deoxygenated blood from systemic circulation to right side of heart (atrium). Oxygenated blood from lungs to left atrium. |
Can you see any veins on your hands or feet? | Yes, you should be able to see an abundance of them. |
Sally was standing on her feet. Her legs are tired and sore. Once she got home she said to cat George “I am so glad I have valves in my veins, especially in my legs”. Why would Sally think it would be beneficial to have valves in her veins | As Sally is standing upright and gravity increases venous pooling and the potential for swelling, she was glad that valves in her veins decreased the likelihood of this occurring by preventing backflow. |
Red blood cells carry oxygen to all the cells in the body. What structural specialisations act to increase their surface area and thus their oxygen-carrying capacity? | No nucleus and a biconcave shape. |
How do red blood cells carry oxygen? | Oxygen is attached to the haemoglobin protein found in blood (~1/3 of each RBC is haemoglobin and haemoglobin gives the red colour of blood). |
How is carbon dioxide carried in the blood? | Dissolved in plasma (7%), combined with haemoglobin (23%), as bicarbonate ions (70%). |
What is the function of platelets in the blood? | Small cell fragments that assist with blood clotting and sealing holes in blood vessels. |
What is the function of white blood cells in the blood? | WBC or leukocytes (e.g. neutrophils and lymphocytes) are involved in immunity and inflammation and they act to protect the body from invading pathogens. |
Pigs heart - What features could you use to distinguish anterior from posterior? | The pulmonary trunk is one of the easiest ways to differentiate between anterior and posterior. From a posterior perspective you can see all the pulmonary veins which make it look very different compared to the anterior view. |
Two veins carry deoxygenated blood from systemic circulation into the right atria. Name these two veins. | Superior vena cava (SVC)
Drains blood from the upper part of the body
Inferior vena cava (IVC)
Drains blood from the lower part of the body |
After moving out of the superior and inferior vena cava, the blood flows into the right atrium (RA). Following this, into which chamber does the blood move directly into? | Right ventricle (RV) |
Blood leaves the right side of the heart and is pumped into the pulmonary trunk (PT), which splits into the left and right pulmonary arteries. Where is this blood going? | To the lungs |
After leaving the lungs, the blood eventually ends up in the left and right pulmonary veins. Into which chamber of the heart does this blood flow into? | Left atrium (LA) |
Into which large chamber of the heart does blood then move into? | Left ventricle (LV) |
Through which vessel does blood leave the heart to move into the systemic circulation? | Aorta (A) |
How does the gaseous composition of blood change as it moves through the pulmonary arteries, capillaries and finally the pulmonary veins? | As blood moves through the pulmonary circulation it picks up more oxygen and gets rid of carbon dioxide. |
There is a valve between the right atrium and the right ventricle. Name this valve. | Tricuspid or right atrioventricular valve |
Observe the strong fibrous cords that attach to the flaps of the valve. What are these called? | Chordae tendinae |
Have a look at the ends of the chordae tendinae and you will see they are attached to muscles that project from the ventricular walls. Name these muscles. What is their function? | Papillary muscles
Their function is to contract to produce tension on the chordae tendinae, and thus the valves. This means the valves get pulled shut and blood can’t flow back into the atria when the ventricle contracts |
The interior lining of the right ventricle contains visible ridges produced by muscle within the wall of the heart. What are these ridges called and what is their role? | Trabeculae carnae which act to increase turbulence and improve blood flow |
Examine the base of the pulmonary trunk (where it leaves the heart) and observe the valve spanning it. What is the name of this valve? | Pulmonary semilunar valve |
What organ is the blood in the pulmonary veins returning from? | Lungs |
Identify the two orifices leading into the left ventricle, the left atrioventricular orifice and the aortic orifice. Find the valves spanning these two orifices and name them. | Bicuspid or left atrioventricular valve, and aortic semilunar valve |
Describe which parts of the body the systemic and pulmonary circulation deliver blood to. SYSTEMIC | supplies oxygen and nutrients to, and removes wastes and carbon dioxide from, tissues of the body. Blood flows from the left ventricle to all the tissues in the body, and back to the right atrium |
Describe which parts of the body the systemic and pulmonary circulation deliver blood to. PULMONARY | Picks up oxygen and gets rid of carbon dioxide in the lungs. Blood (now high in oxygen) then flows back to the left atrium |
The wall of the left ventricle is much thicker than the right ventricle. Why do you think this difference exists? (Hint: this relates to pulmonary versus system circulation). | Pulmonary circulation close to heart, right ventricle doesn’t have to push blood far. Left ventricle responsible for supplying blood to other tissues in the body. Left ventricle generates a lot more power in contraction; works against a higher pressure |
What are the names given to the most superior part of the heart and the most inferior part? | Superior – base
Inferior - apex |
Note how the majority of the heart is located towards the left hand side of the body, as a result which of the two lungs is largest? | Right lung is larger than the left lung |
width of the heart transversely (from right to left) | Transverse width of heart = ~132mm, width of chest = ~ 224mm. |
Name the two major arteries that leave the heart and the chamber they exit from? | Pulmonary trunk – right ventricle
Aorta – left ventricle |
What are the names of the major veins entering the heart? Can you identify them on the Anatomage table? | Superior and inferior vena cavae (into the right atrium)
Pulmonary veins (into the left atrium) |
True or false
Arteries deliver deoxygenated blood back to the right atrium | FALSE
Veins do to including superior and inferior vena cavae |
True or false
The pressure exerted on the walls of systemic arteries is much greater than the pressure in a systemic vein | TRUE
Arteries are under much higher pressure. Veins are low pressure capacitance |
True or false
The walls of the heart contain a lot of muscle | TRUE
Thick myocardium |
True or false
Stroke volume is the amount of blood pumped from the atria to the ventricles | FALSE
SV is the amount of blood pumped out of the ventricles when they contract |
True or false
Cardiac output equals heart rate minus the stroke volume | FALSE
CO = HR x SV |
True or false
At tissue capillaries, oxygen moves out of the capillaries and into cells and carbon dioxide moves out of the cells and into capillaries | TRUE
Oxygen and carbon dioxide move down their concentration gradient |
True or false?
The pulmonary trunk divides into the left and right pulmonary veins | FALSE
The pulmonary trunk divides into left and right pulmonary arteries |
The serous membrane, like the lungs, has a parietal and visceral layer, one of which directly covers the heart. Which one covers the heart? | Visceral |
What structure does the fibrous pericardium attach to inferiorly? | Diaphragm |
What type of epithelium lines the capillaries and allows for quick diffusion of gases? | Simple squamous |
What does the circulatory system consists of? | Pulmonary and systemic circulation |
Freshly oxygenated blood is first received by which chamber? | Left atrium |
What is the thickest layer of the heart wall? | myocardium |
What is the right atrioventricular valve also known as? | Tricuspid valve |
The pulmonary semilunar valve prevents backflow of blood from which two structures? | pulmonary trunk into right ventricle |