CIRCULATORY & LYMPHATIC
SYSTEMS
Lesson 6.3
TRANSPORT AND DISTRIBUTION
▪The human cardiovascular system consists of the heart, blood
vessels, and blood.
1. Heart pumps blood
2. Blood vessels allow blood to circulate throughout the body
▪What circulates throughout the cardiovascular system?
1. Nutrients from digested food
2. Oxygen from lungs
3. Metabolic wastes (e.g. CO2)
4. Hormones (chemical signals from endocrine system)
HEART
● Located in the thoracic cavity in between the lungs and is
made up of cardiac muscle
● The heart has 4 chambers
○ Left and right atrium: receive blood
■ Right atrium: receives blood from the body;
high in CO2 and low in O2
■ Left atrium: receives blood from the lungs;
high in O2 low in CO2
○ Left and right ventricle: pump blood out
■ Right ventricle: receives blood from the right
atrium and pumps blood to the lungs where
it becomes oxygenated
■ Left ventricle: receives blood from left
atrium and pumps to all parts of the body
●
HEART
● Heart walls
○ Epicardium
■ Outermost layer of the
heart
○ Myocardium
■ Middle layer, consists
primarily of cardiac
muscle
○ Endocardium
■ Inner layer of the
heart
HEART VALVES
● Valves are flaps of connective tissue between
the atria and ventricles
○ Moves blood through the heart in one
direction
○ Close to prevent backflow
● 4 valves
○ Atrioventricular valves
■ Between the atria and ventricles
● Left atrium->bicuspid
valve->left ventricle
● Right atrium->tricuspid
valve->right ventricle
○ Semilunar valves
■ Between ventricle and artery
● Right
ventricle->pulmonary
semilunar valve->
pulmonary artery
● Left ventricle->aortic
valve->aorta
BLOOD VESSELS
▪Blood circulates through
the body through a
network of blood vessels
1. Arteries
2. Capillaries
3. Veins
ARTERIES
▪ Arteries carry blood rich in oxygen and
nutrients away from the heart to the cells
of the body
1. Arteries face high levels of blood
pressure as they carry blood being
pushed from the heart under great
force.
▪ As a result, compared to other
blood vessels arteries are thicker,
more muscular, and elastic.
▪ Arteries are made up of three layers of
tissue:
1. Epithelial: Innermost layer (called
endothelium)
2. Smooth muscle: Surrounds the endothelium
3. Connective tissue: protective layer that
surrounds the smooth muscle
▪ Aorta is the largest artery in the body
VEINS
Veins carry oxygen poor blood back to the heart;
this blood contains waste materials
▪ Veins are located further away from the heart
pump and exposed to low pressures
▪ Veins do not receive the pulsing pressure
that arteries do since other vessels absorb
most of the forces from contractions
(arteries)
▪ Veins have thinner, less elastic &
muscular walls than arteries, but have a
larger internal diameter
▪ To facilitate the movement of blood back to
the heart, some veins have valves
▪ These valves prevent blood from flowing
away from the heart
CAPILLARIES
▪Smallest and thinnest of the blood
vessels in the body & the most
common
▪ Connect arteries and veins
together!
▪ Found running throughout almost
every tissue of the body
▪Capillaries carry blood close to the
cells of the tissues of the body in order
to exchange gases, nutrients, and
waste products.
CIRCULATION OF BLOOD IN THE BODY
▪ Goals
▪ Send oxygen poor blood to the lungs to pick up oxygen
▪ Pump oxygen rich blood from the heart to the body cells
▪ 2 primary circulation pathways
▪ Pulmonary circulation
▪ From heart to lungs
▪ Systemic circulation
▪ Heart to body
PULMONARY
CIRCULATION
● Transports deoxygenated blood to the
lungs to absorb oxygen and release carbon
dioxide.
○ Oxygenated blood then flows back to
the heart to enter systemic circulation
● Pulmonary circulation pathway
○ Deoxygenated blood travels from
■ Body->inferior & superior vena
cava->right atrium->tricuspid
valve->right ventricle->pulmonary
semilunar valve->pulmonary
artery->lungs
○ It is at the lungs where gas exchange
occurs!
SYSTEMIC
CIRCULATION
● Transports oxygenated blood
between the heart and the rest of
the body
● Systemic circulation pathway
○ Oxygenated blood travels from
the lungs
■ Lungs->pulmonary
veins->left atrium->bicuspid
valve->left ventricle->aortic
valve->aorta->body
BLOOD
▪Blood is the transport tissue in
the body
1. About 5-6 L are in the
human body
2. pH between 7.35-7.45
▪Composition
1. Blood plasma
2. Erythrocytes
3. White Blood Cells (leukocytes):
4. Platelets
COMPONENTS OF BLOOD: PLASMA
▪About 60 percent of the
total volume of the
blood is plasma, the
liquid portion of blood.
▪Plasma = 90 percent
Water + 10 percent
Solutes
▪ Solutes = nutrients,
wastes, salts, proteins,
hormones, respiratory
gases
COMPONENTS OF BLOOD: CELLS
▪ There are three principal
types of cells in human
blood:
1. Red Blood Cells
(erythrocytes)
▪ Cells that carry oxygen
via iron containing
protein hemoglobin
▪ Hemoglobin also gives
blood its color!
2. White Blood Cells
(leukocytes)
▪ Defends the body
against pathogens
3. Platelets:
▪ Play an important role
in the clotting of blood
BLOOD TYPE
▪Blood type is
genetically determined
by the
presence/absence of a
specific complex
carbohydrate
(antigen) found on the
surface of red blood
cells.
▪ABO Blood Group
System
▪ A, B, AB, O
BLOOD
TRANSFUSIONS
● Can be done using the same blood
type of another type that will NOT
trigger an immune response
○ Type O is universal donor
○ Type AB is the universal
recipient
● Rh blood types
○ Rh factor is an inherited protein
found on the surface of RBCs
also used to determine
compatibility
■ Rh +, RBCs have protein
■ Rh -, RBCs lack protein
LYMPHATIC SYSTEM
▪Due to osmotic pressure, blood plasma remains in capillaries.
However, some fluids can be forced out in the surrounding area due
to pressure from whenever the heart pumps.
▪The lymphatic system collects and recycles fluid leaked from the
cardiovascular system (lymphatic fluid) back to blood.
▪ Lymphatic fluid
▪ Excess water and molecules (electrolytes, proteins, fats, etc)
▪ Transports potentially harmful substances (pathogens, debris,
cancer cells, etc) to lymph nodes to potentially initiate an
immune response.
LYMPHATIC SYSTEM: LYMPH NODES
▪ Components
▪ Lymph nodes
▪ Concentrated in the armpits,
neck, and groin which contain
lymphocytes (white blood
cells) and filter substances
from lymphatic fluid.
▪ Lymphatic vessels
▪ Transports lymph to the
heart
▪ Spleen
▪ Tonsils
▪ Intestinal lymphoid tissue
