Ch. 7.8 Circulatory System Key Terms
What is the aortic valve?
The valve located between the left ventricle and the aorta.
What are arrhythmias?
Abnormal heart rhythms.
What is the circulatory system?
Also known as the cardiovascular system, it is often referred to as the "transportation" system of the body. It consists of the heart, blood vessels, and blood.
What is diastole?
The brief period of rest in the cardiac cycle.
What is the endocardium?
A smooth layer of cells that lines the inside of the heart and is continuous with the inside of blood vessels.
What is the left atrium?
The upper chamber on the left side of the heart that receives oxygenated blood from the lungs.
What is the left ventricle?
The lower chamber on the left side of the heart that receives blood from the left atrium and pumps the blood into the aorta for transport to the body cells.
What is the mitral valve?
The valve located between the left atrium and the left ventricle.
What is the myocardium?
The muscular middle layer of the heart.
What is the pericardium?
A double-layered membrane, or sac, that covers the outside of the heart.
What is the pulmonary valve?
The valve located between the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery.
What is the right atrium?
The upper chamber on the right side of the heart that receives blood as it returns from the body cells.
What is the right ventricle?
The lower chamber on the right side of the heart that receives blood from the right atrium and pumps the blood into the pulmonary artery.
What is the septum?
A muscular wall that separates the heart into a right side and a left side.
What is systole?
The period of ventricular contraction in the cardiac cycle.
What is the tricuspid valve?
The valve located between the right atrium and the right ventricle.
What are arteries?
Blood vessels that carry blood away from the heart.
What is blood?
The tissue that flows through the circulatory system, which contains many kinds of cells and transports substances throughout the body.
What are capillaries?
Tiny blood vessels that connect arterioles (small arteries) with venules (small veins) and have thin walls to allow for oxygen and nutrient exchange.
What are erythrocytes?
Red blood cells, which are produced in the red bone marrow and contain hemoglobin.
What is hemoglobin?
A complex protein found in red blood cells that carries both oxygen and carbon dioxide.
What are leukocytes?
White blood cells, whose main function is to fight infection.
What is plasma?
The fluid portion of blood, which is approximately 90 percent water and contains many dissolved substances.
What are thrombocytes?
Also called platelets, they are fragments of cells that are important for the blood clotting process.
What are veins?
Blood vessels that carry blood back to the heart.