LESSON 1: Organs of the cardiovascular system

There are many viable contenders for determining the strongest muscle, included are: longevity,
strength alone, load, lift, durability, response to pain, healing qualities, size, function, growth, suitability
in recovery and reproducibility of destroyed or diseased cells.

Within the human body, there are several muscles that maybe considered such as the heart, jaw,
tongue, uterus, the list can go on until you have covered most of the over 630 muscles in the human
body.

The strongest muscle is that muscle required to work all day, everyday without tiring or failure. It could
be a group of muscles or a single muscle. It is the one that responds to high demand and allows us to
function almost flawlessly.

The heart begins its work approximately 21 days after conception. As a single cell pump, it will soon
develop into four distinct chambers. It becomes the muscle; all other muscles depend to do their work.

Beating on an average day 115,000 times, about gallons of blood is pumped into arteries and veins
traveling an unprecedented 12,000 miles a day while overcoming gravity to provide nutrients to every
organ, muscle, nerve and tissue.

The Organs of the Cardiovascular System

Circulatory System

- Is responsible in transporting materials throughout the entire body. It

transports nutrients, water, and oxygen to the billions of body cells
composing the multicellular body, heals and fights infections, and at
the same time, removes waste from them.

It functions as an intricate highway that travels throughout the entire body

supplying the body cells with the materials they need to survive.

The circulatory system has two divisions:

1. Cardiovascular system – that transports blood.

2. Lymphatic system – that transports the fluid called lymph.

Is the organ system that transports nutrients (digestive products), gases,

hormones, and other materials `to and from the cells of the body. It also
functions in fighting diseases and help stabilize body temperature and pH to
maintain homeostasis.
 - This organ is composed of the heart, which is a muscular pumping organ; the blood, which is the
circulating medium and a closed system of blood vessels the arteries, veins, and capillaries.

The Heart

Is the muscular organ that pumps blood to the different parts of the body. It is
located at the middle of the chest cavity with its tip or apex slightly tilted
towards the left. Its base lies just below the second ribs. The heart is just as big
as one’s own clenched fist. A sac known as the pericardium encloses it.

Tissue Layers of the heart

The outer layer of the heart wall is the epicardium, the middle layer is the myocardium, and the inner
layer is the endocardium.

Epicardium – is the inner part of the pericardium that is closely adhered to the heart.

Myocardium – is the middle muscular part that is composed of cardiac muscle tissue

Endocardium – is the thin layer of tissue that lines the muscles of the heart.

Between the outer pericardium and the epicardium is the pericardial cavity that is filled with pericardial
fluid.

The Chambers of the Heart

Atria – are the receiving chambers of the heart. These chambers are thin-
walled. The 1. right atrium receives oxygen-poor blood from the vena
cava, a large vein while the 2. left atrium receives blood from the pulmonary veins.

The two ventricles are the pumping chambers that force blood out of the heart. These chambers are
thick-walled. The 3. right ventricle pumps blood to the lungs for oxygenation, while the 4. left ventricle
pumps oxygen-rich blood to all parts of the body.

The Valves of the Heart

Valves are flaps of muscles that prevent blood from back

flowing. Two sets of valves:

a. Atrioventricular valves

b. Pulmonary valves

work to ensure that blood will move only one direction.

The right atrioventricular valve is the tricuspid valve; while the

left atrioventricular valve is the bicuspid or mitral valve. The
valve between the right ventricle and pulmonary artery is the
pulmonary semilunar valve.

When the ventricles contract, the atrioventricular valves are closed to prevent blood from back flowing
into the atria. When the ventricles relax, the semilunar valves close to prevent blood from flowing back
into the ventricles.

The Blood Vessels in the Heart

Blood vessels are connected to the heart. The vena cava is the largest vein that is connected to the
heart. This veins conveys oxygen-poor blood coming from all parts of the body back to the right atrium.
It is divided into two: 1. superior vena cava 2. inferior vena cava

Aorta – is the largest artery. It conveys oxygen-rich blood pumped by the left ventricle to all parts of the
body.

Pulmonary artery – conveys blood pumped by the right ventricle to the lungs for oxygenation. It
branches into two connecting to each of the lungs. The pulmonary veins convey oxygen-rich blood back
to the left atrium of the heart.

The heart, which is the working muscle in the circulatory system, also needs blood to sustain itself. The
right and left coronary arteries, which actually are branches of the ascending aorta, supply the blood to
the walls of the heart.
The Different Types of Blood Vessels

The blood vessels are the network of channels that convey blood to all parts of the body. As the blood
travels throughout the body, it remains confined within the blood vessels. It is for this reason that
human circulation, is described as closed circulation. Blood vessels classified into three: arteries, veins,
and capillaries.

The Structure of an Artery

Arteries convey oxygen-rich blood away from the heart. Except for the
pulmonary arteries that transport blood that has low oxygen content from
the right ventricle to the lungs, most of the arteries transport oxygenated
blood from the left ventricle to the body tissues. Arterioles play a key role
in regulating blood flow into the tissue capillaries.

The arterial walls consist of three layers of tissues.

1. Tunica externa – is composed of connective tissue containing varying

amounts of elastic and collagenous fibers. The presence of these fibers
makes this layer tough and strong.

2. Tunica media, the middle layer, the thickest layer which is composed
primarily of layers of smooth muscle. This layer supports the entire blood vessel, at the same time,
changes the diameter of the vessels to regulate blood flow and to handle pressure of the blood flowing
through it
3. Tunica intima, the innermost layer, composed of connective tissues and lined with simple squamous
epithelium. The layer of epithelium is in direct contact with the blood flow.

The Structure of a Vein

Composed of the three layers of tissues: tunica

adventitia, tunica media, and tunica intima.

Veins convey blood coming from all parts of the body

toward the heart.

The
Structure of a Capillary

Capillaries are the smallest and the most numerous

blood vessels. They form connection between the
arterioles and venules. Their main function is to
exchange gases, nutrients, and waste products of
metabolism between the blood and tissue cells.