BLOOD VESSELS

Thursday, November 5, 2020

1. To determine the differences between
different blood vessels.
2. Relate the structure of the blood
vessels to their function
Chapter 96 The Clot‫ س ورة ا لعلق‬- Al-Alaq: Verse 2
‫ق‬ َ ‫ق اإْل ِ ْن َس‬
ٍ َ‫ان ِم ْن َعل‬ َ َ‫َخل‬
Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: 

Jot down the correct statements from the board

Guide to blood vessels
Identifying blood vessels
Now, let’s consider the blood vessels...

We can get an idea of what they could look like from

considering the job they have to do.
Let us look at a small section of the circulatory system.
There seems to be 3 types of blood vessel present
One joins the
other two
together Lungs

One takes One takes

blood away blood to the
from the heart
heart
 So we have 3 types of blood vessels doing 3
different jobs.
1.
Blood vessels that take blood away
from the heart are known as
ARTERIES.
ARTERIES

Remember, arteries (away)

2.
Blood vessels that take blood back to
the heart are known as VEINS.
VEINS

Remember, veins
in (into
in the heart)
3. Finally, if arteries take blood away from the
heart and veins take blood back to the heart,
when does an artery turn into a vein?

Well, our third type of blood vessel links the two. In

other words, we find it present where an artery
finishes and a vein is about to begin.

This third type of blood

vessel is known as a
CAPILLARY
Let us consider each vessel in turn to see how its
shape is related to the job it has to do.

In each case we will look at a cross-section of the vessel

ARTERY

Thick
muscle and
Small elastic fibres
Lumen
 The small lumen means
that blood will be under high
pressure.
(Imagine using a water hose and
putting your thumb half over the
open end. The water is released
under higher pressure and it flows
faster.)

The thick fibrous wall strengthens the artery. The elastic

allows the artery to stretch under pressure whilst the
muscle can contract to push the blood along.
 This stretching of the artery is what allows us to feel
a pulse.
As the heart beats, it releases regular surges (increased
volumes) of blood. As these pass along the arteries, the
vessel must stretch to allow it to pass. This stretching
pushes on the skin, which we sense as a pulse.

Skin surface

Blood flow Blood flow

The blood flowing through an artery will be under high
pressure and moving extremely fast.

There is no chance that the blood will turn around and

start travelling in the opposite direction. Therefore there
are no valves present in arteries.
VEINS

Thin muscle
and elastic
Large Lumen fibres
 The lumen of a vein is much
thicker than the wall that
surrounds it. There is less of a
need to maintain a high
pressure.

The walls still contain elastic and muscle but there is

far less present compared to the artery.

You will appreciate that the blood is flowing far less quickly
through veins compared to arteries.
The veins are carrying blood back towards the heart.
Materials have been exchanged and now it is running
out of energy. It needs to return to the heart to
receive another pump.

Unfortunately, this could lead to a real Problem..

human
leg What
happens if
blood loses
so much
energy that
it stops and
vein
turns
around?
 This situation could arise where blood is flowing
against gravity. However, there is a solution to this
problem. It comes in two parts.

1. Firstly, veins have valves which act to stop the

blood from going in the wrong direction.
(These valves are similar to those found in the heart)

Valves
close
valves
open

blood
2. The second part of the solution has to get the
blood flowing again whilst overcoming the
problem of a lack of muscle in the lining of the
vessel.
The solution comes in the form of general body muscles that surround
the veins. When these muscles contract to move the body, they also
squeeze the veins and push the blood along the vessel.
Blood flow in veins
Varicose veins
If a vein wall becomes weakened, valves
may no longer close properly. This allows
backflow of blood, causing the vein to
become enlarged and bumpy, and become
varicose.

This usually happens in superficial

veins, near the skin surface in the lower
legs, as opposed to deep veins, which lie
underneath muscles.

Varicose veins can be surgically removed

without affecting blood flow, as most blood
is returned to the heart by deep veins.
Maintaining high blood pressure
Blood pressure is the main force that drives blood from the heart
around the body.
 During systole (heart contraction), blood is pumped
through the aorta and other arteries at high pressure. The
elastic fibres of arteries enable them to expand and allow
blood through.
 During diastole (heart relaxation), the blood pressure in
the arteries drops. The elastic recoil of the artery walls
help force the blood on.
As blood moves through smaller arterioles into capillaries, and
then into venules and veins, its velocity and pressure drop
continuously.
CAPILLARIES

These vessels link arteries with veins. They are found all
over the body and are essential for the exchange of
materials between the blood and other body cells.

vein
artery

body cells capillaries

 Capillaries are so small that
they can only be seen using
a microscope.

A collection of capillaries is
known as a capillary bed.bed

The wall of a
capillary is only one
cell thick!
very narrow
lumen
Substances can diffuse across the lining of the
capillary. This allows useful substances which are
dissolved within the blood to move into surrounding
cells whilst cellular waste moves in the opposite
direction.

3 1 2

The exchange of materials between the blood and the body

can only occur through capillaries.
One such exchange that occurs in the capillaries is
that of oxygen and carbon dioxide.
Activity
Activity
Activity
Activity
Arteries, capillaries and veins
 Blood Vessels

Multiple choice questions

What is the name of blood vessels that
take blood away from the heart?

A veins

B tubes

C capillaries

D arteries
Which of the following vessels has a wall that is
only one cell thick?

A capillaries

B arteries and capillaries

C veins

D arteries
Blood returning to the heart from the body has
a higher percentage of carbon dioxide within it.
Which of the following statements explains
this phenomenon?

A The blood has produced more carbon dioxide as it

flows around the body.
B The blood has picked up the carbon dioxide from
cells that have been performing respiration.
C The body has turned the blood cells into carbon
dioxide.
D The oxygen in the blood has turned into carbon
dioxide.
When blood returns from the lungs to the
heart, it contains more oxygen than it did
when it left. Which of the following
statements explains why this is so?
A The blood returning from the lungs has a low
concentration of carbon dioxide.

B The haemoglobin in the red blood cells binds to the

oxygen.

C The carbon dioxide is dissolved in the plasma.

D The blood contains a higher concentration of oxygen

than the air when it arrives back at the lungs.
As red blood cells flow through the
capillaries between muscle cells they…

A pass out of the capillaries.

B pick up oxygen.

C will release carbon dioxide.

D release oxygen by splitting up their oxy-haemoglobin

molecules.
The blood flows through the arteries…

A slowly at high pressure.

B quickly at low pressure.

C slowly at low pressure.

D quickly at high pressure.

Blood flows through the veins…

A slowly at high pressure.

B quickly at low pressure.

C slowly at low pressure.

D quickly at high pressure.

In the organs, blood flows through…

A large, thick-walled blood vessels.

B narrow, thick-walled blood vessels.

C large, thin-walled blood vessels.

D narrow, thin-walled blood vessels.

What is the job of the valves that are found
within both the heart and veins?

A To stop blood going in the wrong direction.

B To speed up the flow of blood.

C To check the contents of blood.

D To stop the blood flowing.

Which of the following statements describes the
flow of blood through a vein?

A The veins contract and relax in a wave like fashion,

forcing the blood in the right direction.
B The veins have valves, which prevent blood from
flowing backwards. Skeletal muscles squeeze against
the veins and push the blood along.
C The veins have valves which push the blood in the
right direction and elastic walls which force the blood
along.
D As blood is pumped out of the heart the blood is
sucked along the veins.