Chapter 1: Blood Circulation And Transport

Transport System In Human

A. Structure Of The Human Heart
1. General structure of the human heart:
a) The human heart is located inside the thoracic cavity,
behind the breastbone and between the left and the
right lung.
b) The heart is cone-shape and its tip tilts slightly
towards the left side of our body.
c) The heart has a mass of about 300 g and is built of
thick and strong cardiac muscle.

2. Detailed structure of the human heart:

a) the human heart possesses four muscular chambers:
I. two chambers on the left side; left atrium and left
ventricle
II. two chambers on the right side; right atrium and right
b) the left and right chambers are separated by muscle
known as septum so that oxygenated blood does not
combine with deoxygenated blood.

I.
II.
III.
IV.

c) Characteristics of the atrium and ventricle;

I. the ventricle has a larger volume of space than the
atrium.
II. The ventricle has a thicker wall than the atrium.
III. The left ventricle is thicker and more muscular than
the right ventricle because this chamber pumps
blood under higher pressure to the entire body.
d) Each ventricle and atrium is linked to one big blood
vessel:
the left atrium is joined to the pulmonary vein
the right atrium is joined to the vena cava
the left ventricle is joined to the aorta
the right ventricle is joined to the pulmonary artery.
e) The one way flow of blood in the heart is controlled
by three types of valves.
I. bicuspid valve (or mitra valve) controls the one
way blood flow from the left atrium to the left
ventricle.
II. The tricuspid valve controls the one way blood
flow from the right atrium to the right ventricle.
III. The semilunar valve controls the one way blood
flow from the left ventricle to the aorta as well
as from the right ventricle to the pulmonary
artery.

B. Functions Of The Heart

1. The heart functions as strong muscular pump to:
a) collect deoxygenated blood (lacking oxygen) from
the rest of the body. Then, this blood is pumped
from the heart to the lungs to enriched with
oxygen.
b) Collect oxygenated blood (enriched with oxygen)
from the lungs. Then this blood is pumped out of
the heart to be transported throughout the body.

2. the heart also plays a role in the human circulatory

system to:
a) transport nutrients and oxygen to the body
b) transport excretory products such as carbon
dioxide, urea and water from the body cells to be
removed from the body.
C. Blood Vessel In Humans
1. Blood vessels are tubes in the body that channel blood.
2. There are three types of blood vessel in the human body
a) Artery (Pulmonary artery + aorta)
i. Arteries transport blood from the heart to the
body.
ii. Arteries have thick, muscled wall which are
elastic to withstand the high blood pressure
inside.
iii. The aorta is the largest artery. Its transport
blood out of the heart. The aorta branches to
form arteries.
b) Vein (vena cava + Pulmonary vein)
i. veins transport blood into the heart from the
body.
ii. Veins have thin walls, are less muscular and
elastic.
iii. The vena cava is the largest vein. It transports
blood back to the heart.
c) blood capillary
i. capillaries connect arteries to veins.
ii. A capillary is a very fine blood vessel. It has a
permeable membrane that is very thin, as it is
only one cell thick. This facilitates the exchange
of gases, digested food and excretory products
through its walls.
iii. Oxygenated blood differs from deoxygenated
blood in characteristic and content.
Oxygenated blood
Difference
Deoxygenated

Bright red
Present
Not present
High

Not present
Artery and
pulmonary vein

Colour
Oxygen
Carbon dioxide
The concentration
of
Digested food (like
glucose
And acid amino)
Waste products
(like urea)
Blood vessel that
carries it

blood
Dark red
Not present
Present
Low

Present
Vein and pulmonary
artery

Deoxygenated blood has to be carried to the lungs to change it

into oxygenated blood
Blood Vessel Comparisons

Blood Type
Comparisons between artery, veins and capillary
Artery
Veins
Capillary
Lumen

Narrow

Fairly Wide

Very Narrow

Structure
of Wall

Artery

Veins

One cell thick

and gaps in
between
allowing the
exchange of
materials

Direction
of blood
flow
Blood
pressure
Rate of
blood
flow
Presence
of valve
Type of
blood
carried

Away from
heart

Towards the heart

From artery to
veins

High

Low

Very Low

Rapid and
irregular

Slow and regular

Very slow

No

Yes

No

Oxygenated
(pulmonary
artery)

Deoxygenated
(pulmonary vein)

Bot

D. Blood Circulation
1. The main function of the circulatory system is to transport
substances throughout the body.
2. There are two types of blood circulation in humans
a) pulmonary circulation
b) systemic circulation
3. Pulmonary circulation;

a) pulmonary circulation consists of blood vessels

that transport bloodfrom the lungs to the heart and
vice versa.
b) The function of pulmonary circulation is to ensure
that blood with insufficient oxygen receives a fresh
supply oxygen in the lung.
4. systemic circulation
a) systemic circulation consists of all blood vessels
involved in the transport of blood from the heart to
all parts of the body, except the lungs and back to
the heart again.
Blood Contents And Their Functions

Blood consists of;

a) Blood plasma
b) Red blood cells
c) White blood cells
d) Platelets (blood
clotting cells)

1. Blood plasma
Blood plasma contains blood cells and dissolved
substances such as minerals salts, digested food
and gases.
Plasma is the fluid component of blood which is
light yellow.
Plasma contains 92% water and 8% dissolved
substances such as digested food (glucose, amino
acid and fatty acid); excretory products (carbon
dioxide and urea); protein (albumin, globulin,
fibrinogen and antibody), vitamins and mineral
salts.

Blood plasma transports digested food to cells and

transports excretory products such as urea, from
body tissues to excretory organs.
Functions of plasma
Transports digested food such as glucose
and amino acid to tissues for assimilation
and cellular respiration.
Transport excretory products such as
carbon dioxide and urea from tissues to
excretory organs to be eliminated.
Distributes heat throughout the body to
maintain body temperature at 37 0C

2. Red blood cells

Red blood cells have no nuclei.
Known as erythrocytes
The cell is red because
contains haemoglobin (a type
of red pigment which contains iron and protein)
Red blood cells transport oxygen to the body cells.
Red blood cells are produced in bone marrow and
can live up to 120 days.
Red blood cells that are old and will die and be
destroyed in the liver and lymph.

3. White blood cells

White blood cells have nuclei.
Known as leucocytes.
Defends the body against attack
microorganisms. Some can produce antibodies
like antotoxins (to neutralise poisons or toxins),

agglunitin (to clump bacteria), and lysine (to

dissolve outer membrane of bacteria)
Produced in bone marrow and lymph nodes. The
life span of white blood cells varies from a few
days to many months.
Old white blood cells will be destroyed in the
circulation of blood and eliminated together with
urine and faeces.
White blood cells protect the body from infections
caused by microorganisms.
The lack of white blood cells causes deterioration
in the body resistance against disease.
Uncontrolled and excess white blood cells will
cause cancer of the blood and known as
leukaemia. A leukaemia patient gets infected and
this can be fatal.

4. Platelets
Platelets are small bits of cells in the blood that do
not have nuclei.
Known as thrombocytes.
A life span of a platelet is about ten days. Old
platelet are destroyed in the circulation of blood
Platelets help clot blood.
Excessive lack of platelets in the blood causes
haemophilia. Haemophilia is a type
of genetic disorder that can cause
continuous bleeding and prevent
clotting which can be fatal.

The types, functions and places of production as well as

destruction of blood cells.

Type
Estimated
size
Presence of
nucleus
Function

Red blood
cell
8 m

White blood

Cell platelet

10 m

2-3 m

No nucleus

Have
nucleus
Protects
body from
Bacteria
attack
Bone
marrow and
Lymph node

No nucleus

Place of
Destruction
Life span

Transport
oxygen
And carbon
dioxide
Short bone
marrow
Such as rib
and
Sternum
Liver and
lymph
120 days

Number per
cubic

Millimetre
(mm3 )

Place of
production

Circulation
of blood
A few days
to many
months
About 5
million
about 7
million

Helps clotting of
Blood

Bone marrow

Circulation of blood
10 days

About 250 thousand

Blood Group
1. human blood can be classified into four groups. These
are A, B, AB and O.
2. A person with an O blood type can donate to people with
O, A and AB blood types.

3. Therefore, the O blood type is known as a universal

donor.
4. A person with an O blood type can receive blood from
only group O.
5. A person with an AB blood type can receive O, A, AB
blood.
6. Therefore, the AB blood type is known as a universal
recipient.
7. A person with an AB blood type can donate only to group
AB.
8. Mixing incompatible blood groups leads to blood clotting
or agglutination, which is dangerous for the recipient.
Blood group

can donate blood to

A
B
AB
O

A,AB
B,AB
AB
A,B,AB,O

can receive blood

from
A,O
B,O
A,B,AB,O
O

Transport System In Plant

1. The transport system in plants is known as the vascular
system.
2. The vascular system is made up of two main types of
vascular tissues, xylem and phloem
3. The phloem is a tissue that transports food in the

plant.
4. The xylem is a tissue that transports water and
minerals
5. The phloem cell form the bark (outside) of the
plant and the xylem cells form the hardwood
(inside).
6. Xylem and phloem are found in the root, stem and leaf of
a plant.

4. The transpiration rate increase when the

a. temperature increases- more rapidly in the higher
temperature

b. light intensity increases- more rapidly in the presence

of light

Transpiration
1. Transpiration is a process in which water is lost in the
form of water. The water vapour evaporates from the
leaves of plants.
2. A stoma has two kidney shape guard cells that control
the opening and.closing of the stoma and amount of
gases and water vapour that travels through them.
3. Most of the water vapour lost through the stomata on the
leaves.

c. wind speed increases- more rapidly in windy condition

d. humidity decreases- more rapidly in lower humidity
5. A potometer is an apparatus which is used to measure
the rate of transpiration in plants. (bubble photometer
and weight photometer)
6. In the bubble photometer, the rate of transpiration is
determined by the distance travelled by the air bubble
over a period of time.

7. In the weight photometer, the rate of transpiration is

determined by the difference weight of photometer over a
period of time.
8. Transpiration helps transport water and mineral salts
from the roots to all parts of the plant.

2. The phloem is a tube that transports food (glucose) from

the leaf to the stem and root. This food is manufactured
in green leaves during the photosynthesis process.
Xylem:
is a long hollow tissue strengthened by fibre. Fibre is the
cellulose building material from dead cells that does not
contain protoplasm.
Provides support to plants because it has thick and
strong wall.
Functions to transport water and mineral salts from the
roots to the rest of the plant.
Phloem:
is a soft tissue and rich with protoplasm.
Functions to transport product of photosynthesis such as
food (in the form of glucose) from the leaf to other parts
of the plant to be stored or used.

Transport In Plants Through The Xylem And Phloem

1. The xylem is a tube that transports water and mineral
salts from the roots to the leaves.