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The major function of the lungs is gas exchange between the lungs and the blood. [67] The alveolar and pulmonary capillary gases equilibrate across the thin blood–air barrier . [ 34 ] [ 68 ] [ 69 ] This thin membrane (about 0.5 –2 μm thick) is folded into about 300 million alveoli, providing an extremely large surface area (estimates ...
A capillary is a small blood vessel, from 5 to 10 micrometres in diameter, and is part of the microcirculation system. Capillaries are microvessels and the smallest blood vessels in the body. They are composed of only the tunica intima (the innermost layer of an artery or vein), consisting of a thin wall of simple squamous endothelial cells. [2]
Capillary bed Diagram of capillary network joining the arterial system with the venous system The systemic circulation is a circuit loop that delivers oxygenated blood from the left heart to the rest of the body through the aorta .
He proposed that the liver was the originating point of all blood vessels. He also theorized that the heart was not a pumping muscle but rather an organ through which blood passed. [24] Galen's theory included a new description of pulmonary circulation: air was inhaled into the lungs where it became the pneuma.
In humans and other mammals, the anatomy of a typical respiratory system is the respiratory tract.The tract is divided into an upper and a lower respiratory tract.The upper tract includes the nose, nasal cavities, sinuses, pharynx and the part of the larynx above the vocal folds.
Blood vessels function to transport blood to an animal's body tissues. In general, arteries and arterioles transport oxygenated blood from the lungs to the body and its organs, and veins and venules transport deoxygenated blood from the body to the lungs. Blood vessels also circulate blood throughout the circulatory system.
A pulmonary contusion is a bruise of the lung tissue caused by trauma. [35] Damaged capillaries from a contusion can cause blood and other fluids to accumulate in the tissue of the lung, impairing gas exchange. Pulmonary edema is the buildup of fluid in the parenchyma and alveoli. An edema is usually caused by left ventricular heart failure, or ...
The microcirculation has three major components: pre-capillary, capillary, and post-capillary. In the pre-capillary sector, arterioles, and precapillary sphincters participate. Their function is to regulate blood flow before it enters the capillaries and venules by the contraction and relaxation of the smooth muscle found on their walls.