Getting to the Heart of the Matter… The Circulatory System

Components: –Heart – cardiac muscle, involuntary –blood vessels – lined w/smooth muscles –Blood – is a tissue AKA (also known as) - Cardiovascular System –Cardio – means heart –Vascular – means blood vessels

The blood vessels of the circulatory system reach throughout the entire body Blood flows through these vessels to every organ in the body Capillaries reach every cell of the body

Functions of the Circulatory System Carries needed materials to the cells –Oxygen from the lungs –Glucose for energy Carries waste products away from the cells –Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) –Other wastes Carries cells that fight disease throughout the body (white blood cells)

The Heart The heart is made up of four chambers (sections) Split into left and right side by a muscular wall (septum) The heart works with the lungs to provide oxygen to the body

The Parts of the Heart Atrium – the two upper chambers of the heart – Receive blood coming into the heart Ventricles – the two lower chambers of the heart –Pump blood out of the heart Valve – a flap of tissue that prevents blood from flowing backward – Located between each chamber and in the veins

Label the heart on your notes

How the Heart Works The heart muscle relaxes and the atrium fill with blood The atrium contract, pushing blood into the ventricles The ventricles contract to pump the blood out of the heart and into the arteries

The Heart Beat The sound that your heart makes is the valves between the chambers opening and closing lub-dub, lub-dub

Your heart does not work alone Your brain tracks the conditions around you—climate, stress, and your level of physical activity— and adjusts your cardiovascular system to meet those needs

Regulation of Heartbeat The pacemaker regulates the heart beat. –A group of cells located in the right atrium –Sends signals that make the heart contract –Constantly receives internal stimuli about the body’s oxygen needs

Two Loops In one loop – blood travels from the heart to the lungs and back to the heart. In the second loop – blood travels from the heart to the body and back to the heart.

First Loop – to the lungs and back Blood from the body enters the right atrium Through a valve to the right ventricle Out of the right ventricle into the pulmonary artery  to the lungs where the blood releases waste gases and picks up oxygen L & R atria pump together

Do right and left seem backward? That's because you're looking at an illustration of somebody else's heart To think about how your own heart works, imagine wearing the picture on your chest

Second Loop- to the body and back The newly oxygen-rich blood (shown in red) returns to the heart and enters the left atrium Through a valve into the left ventricle The left ventricle contracts, pushing the blood into the aorta  eventually to all parts of the body L &R ventricles pump together

Components of Blood Plasma: the liquid part of the blood. Blood plasma is a pale yellow liquid and contains dissolved food and other dissolved substances Red Blood cells – contain hemoglobin, no nucleus, produced in bone marrow White Blood Cells – fight disease Platelets – helps clot blood Hemoglobin – found in red blood cells, protein with iron that binds to oxygen

Three kinds of Blood Vessels

Arteries – blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart Veins – blood vessels that carry blood back to the heart Capillaries – tiny blood vessels, where exchange of substances between the blood and body cells