The Mammalian Cardiovascular System

Large animals have specialised circulatory systems to transport oxygen, nutrients, hormones,
and other materials to the cells and to remove metabolic wastes.
Why do mammals need transport systems?
- Unlike plants, animals rely on locomotion to find food. This movement means an increase in
respiration for energy, which means an increase in the O2 and nutrient demand.
- Increased respiration will also increase the rate of CO2 production.
- Since mammals do not have such a large surface area : volume ratio, CO2, nutrients and O2
cannot be transported throughout the body simply by diffusion. Thus, a transport system is
required.
Mammals have closed, double circulatory systems.
- Closed means that the blood always remains within the vessels.
- Double means that mammals circulatory systems are divided into two circulates that make
that blood travel twice through the heart in one complete circuit.
Having a double circulatory system allows mammals to pump oxygenated blood faster
throughout the body under higher pressures. It does so by allowing for different pressures
in the pulmonary and systemic circulation.
The
two
circuits of the circulatory system are the pulmonary and systemic circulation.

- Pulmonary circulation:
It carries deoxygenated blood from the right ventricle to the lungs though the pulmonary
artery (rare because arteries usually carry oxygenated blood) and oxygenated blood to the
left atrium though the pulmonary veins.
- Systemic circulation:
It carries oxygenated blood from the left ventricle though the aorta to all the parts of the
body except the lungs. From the body tissues, deoxygenated blood travels back to the
heart via the venae cavae in the right atrium.

Blood Vessels

The main types of blood vessels are arteries (carry blood away from the heart), veins (carry
blood towards the heart), and capillaries (they link arteries and veins and take blood close to
almost every cell in the body).
General artery and vein structure: Arteries and veins have walls made up of three layers:
1. Tunica intima (inner endothelium / lining tissue): It is made up of a layer of flat cells
(squamous epithelium). This layer is very smooth, minimising friction with the moving blood.
It rests on elastic fibres.

2. Tunica media (middle layer): It contains smooth muscle, collagen and the elastic fibres
upon which the squamous epithelium rests.
3. Tunica externa (outer layer): It contains connective tissue, collagen and elastic fibres.
The structure of arteries:
- The function of arteries is to transport blood rapidly funder high pressure from the heart to the
tissues. Their structure is related to their function in the following ways:
a) The elastic layer is relatively thick for two main reasons:
When blood is forced by the heart into the arteries, it creates a pulse of very high
pressure. The elastic wall allows the arteries to expand rather than burst under
pressure. As the pressure decreases as blood passes along the arteries, the
thickness if the elastic wall also decreases the further the artery is from the heart.
It is important that blood pressure in arteries is kept high if blood is to reach the
extremities of the body. When the elastic wall is stretched by pressure it recoils. This
recoil creates another surge of pressure that carries blood forward in a series of
pulses.
b) The collagen fibres provide a tough outer layer that prevents the artery from bursting
under the pressure of the blood.
c) The overall thickness of the wall is large. This again prevents the arteries from bursting.
d) The lumen is small in diameter in order to maintain the pressure.
- As arteries reach tissues they branch into smaller vessels called arterioles. Their walls are
basically the same but have more smooth muscle. This muscle can contract and narrow the
diameter of the arteriole and so reduce the blood flow and control the volume of blood flowing
into the tissues.
The structure of veins:
- The veins structures are adapted to their function in the following ways:
a) The elastic layer of the vein is relatively thin because the blow pressure of the blood
within the veins will not cause them to burst and the pressure is too low to create a
recoil action.
b) The muscular wall is relatively thin because veins carry blood aways from tissues and
therefore their constriction and dilation cannot control the flow of blood to the tissues.
c) The collagen fibres provide a tough outer layer in order to prevent the veins bursting,
but more from the external pressures such as physical forces than from blood pressure
within them.
d) Their lumen have large diameters to allow blood to flow through them more easily.
e) The overall thickness of the wall is small because there is no need for a thick wall as
the pressure within the veins is low (there is low risk of blood vessels bursting).
f) There are semilunar valves throughout to insure that blood does not back-flow. When,
the muscles of the body contract during movement veins are compressed, pressurising
the blood within them. The valves insure that this pressure directs the blood in one
direction only (towards the heart).
- A pressure difference is also created in the body during inspiration (lower pressure in thoracic
cavity). This also helps blood travel back to the heart.
The structure of capillaries:
- The function of capillaries is to exchange materials between the blood and the cells. Their
structure is related to their function in the following ways:
a) Their walls consist only of endothelium (squamous epithelium), making them extremely
thin. This allows for rapid diffusion of materials between the blood and the cells due to
the short distance over which diffusion takes place.
b) They are numerous and highly branched, providing a large surface area.
c) Capillaries form networks throughout every tissue in the body, except the cornea and
cartilage, called capillary beds.
d) They have a narrow diameter (7m) and so they get very close to almost every cell in
the body.
Their lumen is so narrow that red blood cells are squeezed flat against the side of a
capillary. This brings them even closer to the cells to which they supply oxygen.

e) There are spaces between the endothelial cells which allow white blood cells to escape
in order to combat infections within tissues. The degree to which materials can escape
from the capillaries varies from tissue to tissue, being greatest in the kidneys and least
in the brain.