Core Ch8 Transport in Humans

8.1.1 Plasma
1. transports:
-CO2 -Nutrients -Urea -Hormones -Antibodies -Fibrinogen

2. distributes heat throughout the body to maintain body temp

8.1.2 Blood cells

RBC WBC Blood platelets
Shape Biconcave disc Irregular shape Irregular shape
shape
Colour Red due to the Colourless Colourless
pigment
haemoglobin
Nucleus No nucleus when Phagocytes: lobed No nucleus
mature nucleus
Lymphocytes: large
round nucleus
Site of production In bone marrow In bone marrow In bone marrow
and spleen
Life span ~120 days <3 days 7-10 days
Site or method of Site: liver and Killed by Site: liver and
destruction spleen germs/passed out spleen
How? of the body in
Haemoglobin is faeces (esp
broken down into phagocytes)
1. ironreused to
make new RBC
2. bile pigment
waste product
Function Contain Protect our body Involved in blood
haemoglobin to against diseases by clotting to prevent
carry oxygen killing germs further blood loss
(phagocytes engulf and entry of germs
germs, lymphocytes into our body
produce antibodies
to kill germs)
8.2. Blood vessels
Direction of blood flow:
aortaarteriesarteriolescapillariesvenulesveinsvena cava

8.2.1 Arteries
-carry blood away from the heart
-high blood pressure due to the pumping action of heart
-carry oxygenated blood (except pulmonary artery, umbilical artery)
-thick wallsallow the arteries to withstand high blood pressure
-walls of arteries contain a thick layer of muscle (contract/relax to change the
size of the lumenregulate the amount of blood flow to different parts of the
body)
-walls of arteries contain more elastic tissue than that of veinallows the
arteries to distend(when the heart contracts) and recoil (when the heart
relaxes)maintain a continuous blood flow
-lumen of the arteries is smaller than that of veins

8.2.2 Veins
-carry blood towards the heart
-low blood pressure (blood pressure drops after the blood passing through the
capillaries)
-carry deoxygenated blood (except pulmonary vein, umbilical vein)
-thinner walls than arteries
-thinner layer of muscles than arteries
-large lumenreduces the resistance of blood flow inside the veins
-valves are present in veins to prevent the backflow of blood
-contraction of skeletal musclessqueeze the nearby veinsblood is forced to
flow in veins

8.2.3 Capillaries
-walls of capillaries are one-cell thick and differentially permeable
-exchange of materials between blood and body cells occurs in capillaries
8.2.4 Blood pressure along different blood vessels
arteries and arterioles: high blood pressure due to the pumping action of heart
blood pressure changes periodically as the heart
contracts and relaxes

capillaries: small diameterhigh resistance to blood flowsignificant drop in

blood pressure
veins and venules: blood has overcome great resistance after travelling a long
distance away from heartmuch lower blood pressure

8.3 Heart
1. Structure of the heart
-coronary arteries supply oxygen and nutrients to the cardiac muscles while
coronary veins carry carbon dioxide and other waste away
-two sides of the heart are separated by septum(a thick muscular wall), which
prevents the mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood

2. Blood flow direction

vena cavae (anterior vena cava + posterior vena cava)right atriumright
ventriclepulmonary arterylungspulmonary veinsleft atriumleft
ventricleaortaall parts of the body except the lungs

3. Heart valves (function: prevent backflow of blood)

-tricuspid valve: **close when right ventricle contracts**
on the right side of the heart (RT)
prevents backflow of blood from right ventricle to right
atrium

-bicuspid valve: **close when left ventricle contracts**

on the left side of the heart (LB)
prevents backflow of blood from left ventricle to left atrium

-semilunar valve: **close when atria begin to contract+when both atria and
ventricles relax**
on the base of aorta and the pulmonary artery
prevents backflow of blood from aorta to left ventricle
prevents backflow of blood from pulmonary artery to right
ventricle
** bicuspid valve and tricuspid valve are held in place by tough heart tendons,
which prevent them from turning inside out when the ventricles contract

8.4 Blood circulation

Blood passes through the heart twice when it flows throughout our body in one
complete loop—double circulation
Pulmonary circulation:
right atriumright ventriclepulmonary arterylungspulmonary veinsleft
atrium
Systemic circulation:
left atriumleft ventricleaortaall parts of the body except the lungsvena
cavaeright atrium

8.5.1 Material exchange between blood and body cells

-useful materials (oxygen and nutrients) in the blood diffuse into the tissue fluid
across the differentially permeable capillary walls
-waste products from body cells (CO2) diffuse from the body cells into the tissue
fluiddiffuse from the tissue fluid into the blood across the differentially
permeable capillary walls

8.5.2 Adaptations of capillaries for exchange of materials

1. one-cell thick capillary wallprovides a short distance for the diffusion of
materials

2. numerous branches of capillary networkprovides a large surface area for

diffusion of materials

3. large total cross-sectional areablood flows very slowly in the capillaries-->

allows more time for exchange of materials between the blood and the tissue
fluid

8.5.3 Formation of tissue fluid

At the arteriole end of capillary network:
bp of blood in the capillaries>bp of tissue fluidforces some components (e.g.
water, nutrients, sugars…) except, RBC, plasma proteins, blood platelets (too
large to pass through the capillary wall) out of the capillary wall to form the
tissue fluid
WBC can also squeeze through the capillary walls to form the tissue fluid
At the venule end of capillary network:
water potential of the tissue fluid>water potential of the blood(presence of
plasma proteins in blood)water is drawn into the blood by osmosis

Removal of tissue fluid:

-most tissue fluid returns to the blood at the venule end of capillary network
-excess tissue fluid drains into the lymph capillariesare carried back to the
blood circulation

8.5.4 Importance of tissue fluid

1. provides a constant environment for the normal functions of body cells (all
body cells are bathed in tissue fluid)
2. an important link for the exchange of materials between capillaries and body
cells

8.6 Lymphatic system

Lymph flow direction:
lymph capillariessmall lymph vesselslarge lymph vesselssubclavian
veinsanterior vena cava

1. Lymph
-composition similar to blood (except for the absence of RBC, plasma
proteins and blood platelets)

2. Lymph vessels
-valves are presentprevent the backflow of lymph
-contraction of skeletal muscles surrounding the lymph vesselsforce lymph
to flow

3. Lymph nodes
-located at intervals along the lymph vessels
-WBC accumulate here (kill the germs in the lymph)lymph is filtered
through lymph nodes before it returns to the blood circulation

Functions of the lymphatic system:

-returns excess tissue fluid to the blood circulation
-protect us against disease (WBC in lymph nodes kill germs)
-transport lipids from the lacteals in intestinal villi to the blood
 Question bank

1. State the functions of heart valves. {CE 91 4(b)}

-to prevent the backflow of blood from the ventricles into the atria (1)
-when the ventricles are contracting (1)
OR
-to prevent the backflow of blood into the ventricles (1)
-when the ventricles are relaxing (1)

2. Capillary is in the form of a highly branched network. Explain the importance

of this feature to the function of capillary. {CE 98 3(a)}

-The capillary network has a large total cross-sectional area (1)

-so more time is allowed for the exchange of substances between the blood
and the tissue fluid (1)
-the numerous branches provide a large surface area (1)
-for rapid exchange of substances between the blood and the tissue fluid (1)

3. Describe how tissue fluid is formed from the blood. {CE 98 3(a)}

-the pressure of blood near the arteriole end is higher than that of the tissue
fluid (1)
-some of the plasma, except red blood cells, blood platelets and plasma
proteins (1)
-are forced out through the wall of the capillary to form the tissue fluid (1)

4. Describe how the continuous flow of lymph towards the heart is maintained.
{CE 98 3(a)} {CE 01 3(b)}

-contraction of skeletal muscles surrounding the lymph vessels forces lymph

to flow along the lymph vessels (1)
-valves of the lymph vessels prevent the backflow of lymph (1)
5. In the vein of the leg, the blood pressure is very low while the velocity of
blood flow is quite high. Describe how such a high velocity of blood flow is
maintained. {CE 02 4(b)}

-contraction of skeletal muscles adjacent to the veins helps to force the blood
to flow (1)
-valves are also present in the veins to prevent the backflow of blood (1)

6. Peter’s heart rate increased during the fitness test. Explain the importance of
this phenomenon. {CE 99 1(b)}

-the heart beats more rapidly to supply more blood to the skeletal muscles
during the fitness test (1)
-so as to provide more glucose and oxygen for them
-hence, a lot of energy can be released in respiration for stronger muscular
contraction (1)
-increase in blood supply to the muscles also helps carry away CO2 and other
waste produced by the muscles (1)

7. Explain why the lymph in lymph vessels of a person turns from clear to milky
after he has eaten some barbecued pork. {CE 01 3(b)}

-the barbecued pork contains fat (1)

-the digested products are absorbed into the lacteal in the form of lipid
droplets (1)
-as a result, there will be numerous lipid droplets in the lymph in lymph
vessels (1)

8. For a patient suffering from elephantiasis, the lymph vessels in his leg are
blocked by a kind of parasitic worm. The leg becomes greatly swollen due to
the accumulation of tissue fluid. Explain why the tissue fluid accumulates.
{CE 01 3(b)}

-tissue fluid in the leg cannot be transported away as the lymph vessels are
blocked (1)
-meanwhile it is continuously formed in the leg (1)
thus tissue fluid accumulates
9. Lymph node may become enlarged when a person has a sore throat. Explain
why the lymph node is enlarged. {CE 01 3(b)}

-the pathogens that causes sore throat (1)

-stimulates the proliferation of white blood cells in lymph nodes (1)
thus the lymph node is enlarged

10. In a type of heart disorder, bicuspid valve cannot close properly. A man
suffering from the disorder may faint easily when he performs vigorous
exercise. Why?

-If bicuspid valve cannot close properly, oxygenated blood in the left ventricle
will flow back to the left atrium when the ventricles contract (1)
-this reduces the amount of oxygenated blood pumped out of the heart in
each heart beat (1)
-during vigorous exercise, the oxygen consumption of the skeletal muscles is
very high (1)
-this increases the risk of insufficient oxygen supply to the brain (1)
hence the person may faint easily

11. Immunity can be acquired by vaccination. Vaccine may be injected into the
tissue under the skin. Describe how the vaccine can be transported to the
heart after injection. {CE 08 9(b)}

-vaccine injected reaches the tissue fluid (1)

-which drains back to the lymph vessels (1)
-and returns to the heart through a vein (1)

12. Compare the blood pressure in the artery with that in the vein. Suggest 2
reasons for the difference. {CE 02 4(b)}

-the blood pressure in the vein is much lower than that of artery (1)
-the blood in the artery is directly under the pumping action of the heart,
while that in the vein is not (1)
-the blood in the vein has overcome great resistance after travelling over a
long distance (1)
13. State two functions of the thick wall of an artery. {CE 04 3(c)}

-to withstand the high blood pressure (1)

-to regulate the blood flow to the organ/control the diameter of the vessel
lumen (1)

14. Explain the importance of muscular tissue in the wall of artery. {CE 05 8(a)}

-the muscular tissue can contract and relax (1)

-to change the diameter of the lumen in the artery (1)
-so as to regulate the amount of blood flow to different parts of the body (1)

15. Vein has a larger lumen than artery. Explain the importance of this.
{CE 04 3(c)}

-blood pressure in vein is lower (1)

-larger lumen would have smaller resistance, hence facilitating blood flow (1)

16. Explain why it was difficult to insert the metal wire from the pulmonary
artery into the right ventricle. {CE 10 3(b)}

-the presence of semi-lunar valves in the pulmonary artery blocked the

passage of the metal wire when it was inserted from the pulmonary artery
into the right ventricle (1)

17. Although both arteries and veins are blood vessels, they are very different in
their structure. Discuss how their structural differences are related to the
different ways of maintaining blood flow inside the blood vessel. {DSE 15 11}
Structural differences Ways of maintaining blood flow
Wall of arteries is thicker than that of Pumping of heart created a high
veins (1) blood pressure to drive the blood
flow in arteries (1), the thick wall can
withstand the high blood pressure
(1)
Wall of arteries contains more elastic Elastic nature of the arterial wall
tissues than that of veins (1) allows recoil of the wall (1) which
maintains the blood flow along the
arteries
 Valves are present in veins but not in
arteries (1)
Lumen of veins is larger than that of
arteries (1)
Blood flow in veins is maintained by
the contraction of skeletal muscles,
(1) which squeeze the blood along,
presence of valves can prevent the
backflow of blood (1)
Blood pressure inside veins is
relatively low, (1) having a larger
lumen reduces the resistance to
blood flow (1)-->facilitating blood
flow

Circulatory System (★★★★+)

1. Mammalian Heart
{AL 01 PIIA-1(d), AL 03 PIIB-4(c), AL 04 PIIB-6(a), AL 09 PIIB-4(c)}
{CE 97-2(c), CE 03-4(b)}
(a) Role of coronary arteries and veins (blockage of coronary arteries leads to
heart attack)
(b) Role of tricuspid valves, bicuspid valves & semi-lunar valves (prevents
backflow of blood)
(c) The changes in the heart rate and stroke volume during exercise & its
significance
(d) Trained person vs untrained person (at rest & during exercise)

2. A flowchart to show the flow of blood from small intestine through liver to
lungs (small intestine->hepatic portal vein->liver->hepatic vein->vena
cava->heart->pulmonary artery->lung)
3. (a) Composition of blood in pulmonary arteries vs pulmonary veins (OR
umbilical artery vs. umbilical vein) {blood in pulmonary artery has a higher
CO2 and lower O2 content than pulmonary vein}
(b) Comparison of the cross-section of an artery & a vein (artery has a thicker
wall than vein) {DSE 15 P1-11, CE 04-3(c)}
(c) Structural adaptations of blood capillaries on the exchange of materials

4. Formation of tissue fluid & functions of lymphatic system

{DSE 17 P1-11, AL 05 PIIB-5(b), CE 00-3(a), CE 01-3(b), CE 05-8(a)}