Blood Vessels Flashcards
Name the three types of blood vessels.
- Arteries
- Capillaries
- Veins
What is the purpose of the arteries?
They carry the blood away from the heart.
What are the capillaries involved in?
The exchange of materials at the tissue.
What blood vessel carries the blood TO the heart?
The veins.
Describe the structure of the arteries.
Thick muscle walls and elastic fibres.
How do thick muscle walls benefit the arteries?
It makes them strong and able to cope with high pressure.
What is the hole in the middle of the artery called?
Lumen
Define capillaries.
Arteries branch into much smaller capillaries. They exchange food, oxygen and waste products.
Substances can diffuse into and out of the capillaries. What allows this?
Capillaries have permeable walls.
Capillaries eventually join up to form ______.
Veins
Why are the walls in veins thinner than in arteries?
because the blood is at lower pressure.
Why do veins have valves?
to keep the blood flowing in the right direction.
Describe how veins are adapted to carry blood back to the heart. (2 marks)
They have valves that keep the blood flowing in the right direction and they also have a big lumen to help the blood flow easily.
What is the equation for calculating the rate of blood flow?
rate of blood flow= volume of blood/number of minutes
