BLOOD

is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. life-sustaining fluid

Blood performs many important functions within the body including:

Supply of oxygen to tissues (bound to hemoglobin, which is carried in red cells) Supply of nutrients such as glucose, amino acids, and fatty acids (dissolved in the blood or bound to plasma proteins (e.g., blood lipids)) Removal of waste such as carbon dioxide, urea, and lactic acid Immunological functions, including circulation of white blood cells, and detection of foreign material by antibodies Coagulation, which is one part of the body's self-repair mechanism (blood clotting after an open wound in order to stop bleeding) Messenger functions, including the transport of hormones and the signaling of tissue damage Regulation of body pH Regulation of core body temperature Hydraulic functions

COMPONENTS OF CIRCULATORY SYSTEM

The human circulatory system functions to transport blood and oxygen from the lungs to the various tissues of the body. The heart pumps the blood throughout the body. The lymphatic system is an extension of the human circulatory system that includes cell-mediated and antibodymediated immune systems. The components of the human circulatory system include the heart, blood, red and white blood cells, platelets, and the lymphatic system.

Heart
The human heart is about the size of a clenched fist. It contains four chambers: two atria and two ventricles. Oxygen-poor blood enters the right atrium through a major vein called the vena cava. The blood passes through the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle. Next, the blood is pumped through the pulmonary artery to the lungs for gas exchange. Oxygen-rich blood returns to the left atrium via the pulmonary vein. The oxygen-rich blood flows through the bicuspid (mitral) valve into the left ventricle, from which it is pumped through a major artery, the aorta. Two valves called semilunar valves are found in the pulmonary artery and aorta.

 Blood
Blood is the medium of transport in the body. The fluid portion of the blood, the plasma, is a straw-colored liquid composed primarily of water. All the important nutrients, the hormones, and the clotting proteins as well as the waste products are transported in the plasma. Red blood cells and white blood cells are also suspended in the plasma. Plasma from which the clotting proteins have been removed is serum.

Blood vessels
1. Arteries carry oxygenated blood (blood that has received oxygen from the lungs) from the heart to the rest of the body. 2. Blood then travels through veins back to the heart and lungs, where it receives more oxygen.

COMPONENTS OF THE BLOOD Red blood cells

Red blood cells are erythrocytes. These are disk-shaped cells produced in the bone marrow. Red blood cells have no nucleus, and their cytoplasm is filled with hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is a red-pigmented protein that binds loosely to oxygen atoms and carbon dioxide molecules. It is the mechanism of transport of these substances. (Much carbon dioxide is also transported as bicarbonate ions.) Hemoglobin also binds to carbon monoxide. Unfortunately, this binding is irreversible, so it often leads to carbon-monoxide poisoning.

White blood cells

White blood cells are referred to as leukocytes. They are generally larger than red blood cells and have clearly defined nuclei. They are also produced in the bone marrow and have various functions in the body. Certain white blood cells called lymphocytes are essential components of the immune system. Other cells called neutrophils and monocytes function primarily as phagocytes; that is, they attack and engulf invading microorganisms. About 30 percent of the white blood cells are lymphocytes, about 60 percent are neutrophils, and about 8 percent are

monocytes. The remaining white blood cells are eosinophils and basophils. Their functions are uncertain; however, basophils are believed to function in allergic responses.

Platelets
Platelets are small disk-shaped blood fragments produced in the bone marrow. They lack nuclei and are much smaller than erythrocytes. Also known technically as thrombocytes, they serve as the starting material for blood clotting. The platelets adhere to damaged blood vessel walls, and thromboplastin is liberated from the injured tissue. Thromboplastin, in turn, activates other clotting factors in the blood. Along with calcium ions and other factors, thromboplastin converts the blood protein prothrombin into thrombin.

BLOOD DISORDERS Blood Cholesterol: Large quantities of cholesterol within the arteries will cause
narrowing, which will restrict the blood flow, and thereby the oxygen, reaching the lungs.

Hemochromatosis: A condition resulting from the absorption of excessive quantities of

iron.

Hemophilia: A disease affecting the blood's ability to form a clot. High Blood Pressure: A condition that occurs when an individual's blood pressure
increases to a level that puts them at risk for a stroke, heart disease, and kidney disease.

Lymphatic Filariasis: A blood disorder caused by the introduction of nematode worms

into the blood.

Polycthemia Vera: A disease characterized by an increase in blood volume, as well as

the over production of blood constituents, increasing the risk of stroke and blood clots.

Sepsis: A bacterial infection that spreads throughout the organs, usually from an infected
wound, often causing septic shock and death.

Sickle Cell Disease: A type of anemia resulting from the presence of abnormal hemoglobin, causing numerous health complications. Thalassemia: A genetic blood disorder characterized by the presence of an unusual type of hemoglobin. to heal injuries.

Thrombosis: A condition that occurs when platelets clog blood vessels while attempting

BLOOD PRESSURE (BP)

Is the pressure exerted by circulating blood upon the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs. When used without further specification, "blood pressure" usually refers to the arterial pressure of the systemic circulation. During each heartbeat, BP varies between a maximum (systolic) and a minimum (diastolic) pressure. The mean BP, due to pumping by the heart and resistance to flow in blood vessels, decreases as the circulating blood moves away from the heart through arteries. Blood pressure drops most rapidly along the small arteries and arterioles, and continues to decrease as the blood moves through the capillaries and back to the heart through veins.

HEARTBEAT may refer to:

Cardiac cycle of the heart Heart sounds Pulse

BLOOD TYPE
Blood group A

If you belong to the blood group A, you have A antigens on the surface of your red blood cells and B antibodies in your blood plasma Blood group B

If you belong to the blood group B, you have B antigens on the surface of your red blood cells and A antibodies in your blood plasma. Blood group AB

If you belong to the blood group AB, you have both A and B antigens on the surface of your red blood cells and no A or B antibodies at all in your blood plasma. Blood group O If you belong to the blood group O (null), you have neither A or B antigens on the surface of your red blood cells but you have both A and B antibodies in your blood plasma. People with blood group O Rh - are called "universal donors" and people with blood group AB Rh+ are called "universal receivers."

Blood Group AB Rh+

Antigens A, B and Rh

Antibodies None

Can give blood to AB Rh+

Can receive blood from AB Rh+, AB Rh -

A Rh+, A Rh B Rh+, B Rh O Rh+, O Rh AB Rh A and B None (Can develop Rh antibodies) B B (Can develop Rh antibodies) A A (Can develop Rh antibodies) A and B AB Rh AB Rh+ A Rh+ AB Rh+ A Rh - , A Rh+ AB Rh AB Rh+ B Rh+ AB Rh+ B Rh-, B Rh+ AB Rh-, AB Rh+ O Rh+, A Rh+ B Rh+, AB Rh+ AB Rh+, AB Rh A Rh+, A Rh B Rh+, B Rh O Rh+, O Rh AB Rh - , A Rh B Rh -, 0 Rh A Rh+, A Rh O Rh+, O Rh A Rh 0 Rh B Rh+, B Rh O Rh+, O RhB Rh O Rh ORh+, O Rh -

A Rh+ A Rh -

A and Rh A

B Rh+ B Rh -

B and Rh B

O Rh+

Rh

0 Rh -

None

A and B (Can develop Rh antibodies)

0 Rh -