-Notes by SSBIO, Biology Lecturer, KMC Lalitpur

External Structure of Frog’s Heart

The heart is a reddish brown conical muscular organ. The outer layer of heart is called pericardium.
The heart of frog consists of three chambers: two auricles (right auricle and left auricle) and left ventricle.
In the dorsal part of the heart, the sinus venosus is connected to the right auricle. The sinus venosus is made
up of right precaval, left precaval and post caval, which open through a common opening in the right auricle.
In the ventral part of the heart, the truncus arteriosus is connected to the ventricle. The truncus arteriosus
consists of two aortic trunks. Each aortic trunk is divided into carotid artery, systemic artery and
pulmoncutaneous artery.
The pulmonary veins (right and left) are connected to the left auricle of the heart and open through a
common opening.

Internal Structure of Frog’s Heart

The heart of frog consists of three chambers: two auricles (right auricle and left auricle) and left ventricle.
The right auricle is larger than the left auricle. The right auricle and left auricle are internally divided by
inter-auricular septum. The auricles and ventricle are separated by auriculo-ventricular septum. The wall of
ventricle is thicker than that of the auricles. The thick muscular wall of ventricle consisting of many ridges
and fissures is called columnae carnae.
The Sinus venosus made up of right precaval, left precaval and post caval carries the deoxygenated blood
from different body parts through a common opening to the right auricle.
The deoxygenated blood from right auricle is passed into the ventricle by the opening of a large auriculo-
ventricular valve. (The auriculo-ventricular valve has two main functions: to allow the passage of blood
into the ventricle from both auricles and to prevent the backflow of blood into the auricles).
The auriculo-ventricular valve is connected to the columnae carnae of the ventricle by tough elastic cords
known as chordae tendinae.
The deoxygenated blood from the ventricle is passed into the lungs (right lung and left lung) through the
pulmocutaneous artery of the truncus arteriosus.
After oxygenation (gaseous exchange), the oxygenated blood from the lungs is passed into the left auricle
through two pulmonary veins. These pulmonary veins open to the left auricle by a common opening.
The oxygenated blood from the left auricle is passed into the ventricle by the auriculo-ventricular
valve. When the ventricle contracts, the oxygenated blood is passed into all the body parts from the heart
through the truncus arteriosus.
The truncus arteriosus is guarded by three semi lunar valves, which prevent hack flow of blood
from truncus arteriosus into the ventricle.
The truncus arterisous is divided into two unequal parts:
(i) Conus arteriosus (the part near the ventricle).
(ii) Bulbous arteriosus (the part away from the ventricle).
The conus arteriosus contains a large cavity called pylangium. The pylangium is incompletely
divided into two passages, a right-ventral cavum aorticum and a left-dorsal, the cavum pulmocutaneum by
a spiral valve. (Due to the twisting of spiral valve, the position of the cavum aorticum becomes ventral and
the cavum pulmocutaneum, dorsal).
The bulbous arteriosus contains a large cavity called synangium. The synangium divides into two
arterial trunks, each having three branches: carotid artery, systemic artery and pulmocutaneous artery.