Arteries - circulation, Biology

Assignment Help:

Arteries - Circulation

The arteries deliver blood from the heart. Figure shows the structure of arteries and the different layers of the vessel wall. The thick walls of these blood vessels, except those of the smallest, are supplied by their own capillary network called vasa vasoram. The arteries serve four main functions:

  1. To act as a conduit for blood between heart and capillaries,
  2. To act as a pressure reservoir for forcing blood into small diameter arterioles,
  3. To produce a more or less even flow of blood through the capillaries,
  4. To control distribution of blood to different capillary networks via selective constriction of the terminal branches

 

 

143_Arteries - Circulation.png

Figure: Major structures in peripheral blood circulation in mammals. Blood flows from the arteries through the capillaries into the veins (id is internal diameter).

There is a precise control on arterial blood pressure. The nature of the arterial wall and the volume of blood pumped into the arteries determine the pressure. If any of these are changed, the pressure will also change. Normally, arterial blood pressure varies very little as cardiac output and capillary flow is evenly matched.

The elastic properties of arterial walls vary. Close to the heart the arteries are elastic and dampen the oscillations in pressure and flow generated by the contractions of the heart. As the heart relaxes the pressure in the arteries is maintained by a reduction in vessel volume. If the arteries were rigid tubes then the same pressure fluctuations would be experienced by peripheral vessels as that observed when blood leaves the heart.


Related Discussions:- Arteries - circulation

Define the swab or agar - food microbiology, Define the Swab or Agar - Food...

Define the Swab or Agar - Food Microbiology? Slant Method The method involves sampling with cotton swabs that are transferred directly to slants. Other methods include use of u

What are the aerobic and anaerobic exercises, Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercis...

Aerobic and Anaerobic Exercises Generally, there are two types of exercises: - Aerobic - Anaerobic Aerobic exercises are those in which the patient spends calories fro

Define the first step to envision the pattern of deformation, Define the fi...

Define the first step to envision the pattern of deformation. The first step in the analysis is to envision the pattern of deformation that would accompany such a failure. In t

Matter - living and non-living, Matter - Living and Non-Living Our uni...

Matter - Living and Non-Living Our universe is made up of two basic components:, matter and. energy. Matter, as you know, has mass; it occupies space. You can touch matter. It

Amazonian butterflies, The Amazon rainforest in South America is a biodiver...

The Amazon rainforest in South America is a biodiverse ecosystem. There are large numbers of plant and animal species making up the food web, including over 350 species of predator

Life cycle of malarial parasite, Life cycle of malarial parasite Whe...

Life cycle of malarial parasite When the mosquito sucks the blood, gametocytes enter its digestive system. They migrate into the walls of the digestive system and undergo

Explain cake mix evaluation - performance evaluation, Cake mix evaluation  ...

Cake mix evaluation  Originally, cake mix formulations were very similar to bakery cakes and utilized standard "Hi-Ratio" cake oils; however, development of improved cake mixes

Describe class agnatha in details, Describe Class Agnatha in details? C...

Describe Class Agnatha in details? Class Agnatha takes its name from the Greek word "gnathos," which means jaw, and "a," which is the prefix for "without." These jawless fishes

Enzymes of endoplasmic reticulum, ENZYMES OF E.R. Numerous enzymes have...

ENZYMES OF E.R. Numerous enzymes have been found associated with its membranes, Glucose-6-phosphatase is the marker enzyme of E.R. The chief being those required for the synt

Find the magnitude of the acceleration, A proton accelerates from rest in a...

A proton accelerates from rest in a uniform electric field of 650 N/C. At some later time, its speed is 1.3 106 m/s. Find the magnitude of the acceleration of the proton. M/s2

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd