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Explain the functioning of heart ? |
Heart is more than a pump, composed of muscle which pumps blood throughout the body, beating approximately 72 times per minute. The heart pumps the blood, which carries all the vital materials which help our bodies function and removes the waste products. The walls of the heart are made up of three layers, while the cavity is divided into four parts. There are two upper chambers, called the right and left atria, and two lower chambers, called the right and left ventricles. The de-oxygenated blood collects inside the right atrium and is transferred or pumped to the lungs via the right ventricle by the tricuspid valve. Once the carbon dioxide is exhaled and the blood is recharged with oxygen from inhaled air, the re-oxygenated blood collects in the left atrium which is then moved to the left ventricle by the mitral valve which then pumps it out to the rest of the body, releasing the oxygenated blood to replenish the tissues. The function of the heart valves is to transport blood from one end of the heart to the other end - from atrium to ventricle and vice versa. When blood is transported from the right atrium to the right ventricle by the tricuspid valve, it is pumped out via the pulmonary seminular valve through the pulmonary artery to the lungs. The pulmonary vein carries the oxygenated blood to the left atrium which is then transported by the mitral valve to the left ventricle. The aortic seminular valve transports this blood from the left ventricle to the aorta which is forked to accommodate the distribution of blood between major arteries that carry blood to the upper and lower body. From these major arteries branch off arterioles, which further branch off into capillaries. Watch the heart animation which will be useful to you. |