## The need for a specialist transport system in a multicellular animal

- Small animals do not need a transport system< their cells are surrounded by or
are very close to the environment, and diffusion supplies sufficient oxygen and
nutrients
- Multicellular organisms however require a transport system. Three main factors
influence this size:
- Size
- Surface area: Volume ratio
- Metabolic Rate

# Factors
- [Size]
- Multicellular organisms are large and have a complex anatomy i.e. more than 2
layers of cells. The outer layers of cells use up the supplies, so that less
reaches the cells deep inside the organism.
- The cells inside a large organism are further from the surface hence the
diffusion pathway is increased. Diffusion rate is reduced and diffusion is too slow
to supply all the requirements.
- Molecules are produced in one part of the organism and need to be transported to
another part of the organism i.e. hormones
- Oxygen and nutrients need to be transported to cells and waste products need to
be transported away from cells.

### SA:V Ratio

- Multicellular organisms always have a small surface area to volume ratio
- We have a smaller surface area compared to the volume inside of us
- Diffusion distances are therefore bigger and the amount of surface area over
which to absorb or remove substances becomes relatively smaller
- Single celled organisms have a higher surface area compared to the volume inside
of them

#### Metabolic Demands

- In large organisms metabolic demands are high, lots of oxygen and food is
required and lots of waste is produced and requires removal
- Diffusion over long distances would not be enough to supply the quantities
neeeded
- Some multicellular organisms may need to keep themselves warm (endotherms) E.G
mammals and will have higher metabolic demands
- Levels of activity may also be higher and will demand more energy to be released
from aerobic respiration

##### Common features of most transport systems

- [Liquid transport medium to circulate around the system]
- [Vessels to carry the transport medium (ours is blood)]
- [Pumping Mechanism to create a pressure gradient (your heart and muscular
movements)]

###### Mass Transport

- When substances are transported in a mass of fluid with a mechanism for moving
the fluid around the body it is known as [mass transport] or a mass flow system
- This is like a river carrying everything in it
- Mass flow always requires a source of energy to pump the fluid, but it has the
advantage of being much faster than diffusion, especially over large distances.
- Mass flow is completely independent of concentration differences
## Open and closed circulations
- Large multicellular animals usually have an open or a closed circulatory system
- Insects would usually have open circulation
- Fish, mammals would have closed circulation

## Open circulation
- Very few vessels to contain the transport medium
- Transport medium is pumped straight from the heart to the body cavity of the
animal
- The open body cavity is called a haemocoel
- In the haemocoel the transport medium is under low pressure, and it comes into
direct contact with the tissues and cells
- Exchange takes place in the haemocoel between the cells and the transport medium.
- The transport medium returns back to the heart through an open ended vessel