Blood and the Cardiovascular System

by: Mohamad Taufik Hidayat b. Baharuldin Unit of Physiology, Department of Human Anatomy, FPSK, UPM

The cardiovascular system consist of :

1) The heart (cardiac)

2) Blood vessels
3) Blood

Function: to circulate blood around the body

Heart :
2 separate pumps (atrium + ventricle on each side) Right atrium receives venous blood from the body Right ventricle pumps blood into the lungs for oxygenation (pulmonary circulation)

At the same time

The left atrium receives blood from the lungs The left ventricle pumps it into arterial bed of the rest of the body (systemic circulation)

Blood vessels consist of :

the arteries (aorta, arteries, arterioles) the veins (vena cava, veins, venules) the arteries connect to the veins by capillary network.

Blood

It is a connective tissue made of liquid portion (plasma) and formed elements (RBC, WBC, platelet) It is the major extracellular fluid in the body It is important for several physiological processes Blood flow properties and its fluid is crucial for many of its function, including transport functions.

Characteristics of the Blood

The colour of the whole blood is bright red if it is arterial (oxygenated) and dark red if it is obtained from systemic veins. Viscosity of blood refers to its resistance to flow. Blood is thick and sticky. Its viscosity is 3-4 times that of water due to mainly the cells and partly to proteins dissolved in the plasma. Specific gravity of the blood average 1.060 (1 mL of blood weighs 1.060 grams)

Characteristics of the Blood

Blood pH is 7.4. Venous blood is more acidic (7.36) than arterial blood because of higher CO2. A slight decrease or increase in pH reflects a large increase or decrease in hydrogen ions concentration [H+]. If pH is 7.1, [H+] is double than normal. Blood volume (BV) is generally about 8% of the body weight. They are variations.

Functions of the Blood

1) Transportation
- Blood transports bodily required elements
* Oxygen from the lungs to cells * Nutrients from the intestines to all parts of the body * Hormones from endocrine glands to the target organs - Blood returns bodily wasted elements

* Carbon dioxide from the cells to the lung

* Urea from the tissue to kidney to be excreted (urine)

Functions of the Blood

2) Regulations
-Blood maintain uniformity of internal environment; homeostasis (pH, water, temperature, electrolytes) through:
* Temperature regulation (transport of heat from the body core to the limbs and skin where heat exchange can take place. Blood flow through the skin is critical for heat exchange. * Excessive water, electrolytes, salt in the body will be excreted by the kidneys as urine (+ heat). * Blood acts as buffer system for maintaining acidbase balance

Functions of the Blood

3) Immunity and Protection
-Blood transports white blood cells to injury sites where they combat insults by invading microorganisms and their toxins (phagocytosis). -Blood produces antibodies to target areas.

-In the case of injury, platelets and certain blood proteins participate in coagulation mechanisms to prevent blood loss.

What constitutes the blood?

Formed elements: Erythrocytes (red blood cells;RBC), leukocytes (white blood cells;WBC) and thrombocytes (platelets) suspended in a complex fluid extracellular matrix (plasma). Plasma: liquid form. Containing dissolved matters (proteins, hormones, wastes, etc) 45% of whole blood is formed elements (99% contributed by RBCs). 55% of whole blood is plasma. 1% is WBCs and platelets

Whole blood is composed of two portions

Plasma

Plasma is 55% of the whole blood Plasma is obtained by centrifugation of blood collected in syringe containing amount of anticoagulant (heparin, sodium citrate, EDTA). Anti coagulant is substance that inhibit coagulation processes. Serum (plasma minus clotting protein) is obtained by collecting blood without the addition of an anticoagulant.

Plasma

Physical colour appearance: * Normal: clear yellowish straw * Fasting: pale yellow/clear * High fat intake: cloudy, opaque (lipaemic) * Hemolytic condition or liver diseases : dark yellow, reddish

Plasma
* Water = 90% * Dissolved gases + dissolved matters = 10% * dissolved gases- O2, CO2, N2

* dissolved matters(1) proteins 7% (6-8g/100 mL plasma) (2) organic constituents (enzymes, hormones, neutral fats, glucose, creatinine, urea.) (3) inorganic constituents (Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+)

Plasma proteins
Major plasma proteins are: 1. Albumins (54%) - smallest plasma proteins, function as protein carrier for some steroid hormones@ fatty acids Globulins (38%)- alpha, beta, gamma - gamma-globulins form antibody (Ig) - alpha & beta-globulin act as protein carrier for trace elements eg. iron, lipids & fat soluble vitamins

2.

Plasma proteins
3. Fibrinogen (7%) - function as clotting factor
Most plasma proteins are formed in the liver, but gamma-globulins (immunity) are formed in the lymphoreticular systems and plasma cells.

4.

Erythrocytes (RBC)

Produced in red bone marrow (adult) in a process called erythropoiesis. Morphology: - biconcave disc, diameter 7-8 m - no nucleus and no organelles - have a strong and elastic membrane for gas transport and exchange - containing hemoglobin molecules Major RBC function- O2 transport from the lung to the tissues, and CO2 from the tissues to the lung.

Erythrocytes (RBC)

RBC counts in healthy adults:

Male is 4.6-6.5 x 106 /ul blood Female is 3.9-5.6 x 106 /ul blood

* Life span -120 days * Every RBC contain some amount of protein- hemoglobin * Estimated in each RBC containing 280 million of Hb molecules * Hemoglobin function to accommodate blood gasses (O2 and CO2)

Leukocyte (WBC)

Provide resistance to infection that enters the circulatory The mobile units of the protective system. They concentrate particularly in areas of serious inflammation. There are normally 4,000-11,000 WBCs in 1 uL human blood Life span few hours (neutrophil), few days (Blymphocyte) to several years (T-lymphocyte).

Functions of WBC
1. To defend the body from foreign body by cellular action (phagocytosis); function of neutrophils & monocytes. 2. Antibody and cell mediated immunity (antibody production); function of lymphocytes

Types of WBC
Phagocytes
Lymphocytes Function: - To engulf &
destroy bacteria or other foreign matters

Function: -Effector cells of

the immune system -Produce antibody

Types of WBC
Granulocyte -granulated cytoplasm & the most abundant WBCs
Eosinophil (1-4%) Neutrophil Life span (50-70%) Few hrs Life span 6-10 hr
Basophil (0-1%)

Agranulocyte -no granule in the cytoplasm

Lymphocytes Monocyte (2-8%)

Macrophage

Functions of Phagocytes
-To perform phagocytosis (phagien= to swallow)
- Phagocytosis definition: the process by which foreign particles invading the body or minute food particles are engulfed and broken down by certain animal cells (known as phagocytes)

- The cell membrane of phagocyte invaginate to capture the particle and then closes around it to form sac or vacuole. The vacuole coalesces with a lysosome, which contains enzymes that break down the particle

Lymphocytes

20-40% of WBC in the circulatory system Morphology: prominent rounded nucleus-occupy almost all space in the cytoplasm- unable to perform phagocytosis Produced in lymphatic tissues (lymph nodes, spleen, thymus) 2 types of lymphocytes- T- lymphocytes (timus derived & B-lymphocytes (bone marrow derived)

Functions of Lymphocytes

Key constituents of the immune system, through their ability to produce antibody & remember the antigens. Second exposure to the same foreign substance produce more rapid and greater response.

Thrombocytes (platelet)

No nucleus Important role in blood clotting and release serotonin, prostaglandins and other chemical, which cause a chain of events leading to the formation of a plug at the site of the damage, thus preventing further blood loss. There are 250,000 platelets per cubic mL of blood Life span 9-12 days.

Platelets serve 3 primary functions:

Sticking to the injured blood vessel (platelet adherence)

Attaching to other platelets to enlarge the forming of plug

(platelet aggregation) Providing support for the processes of the coagulation (receptors on the surface of platelets are required for many of the reactions)