Name: Ruth-Ann LambertGrade: 602bTeacher: Mrs. Foster-McFarlaneExperiment: Number NineDate: February 5, 2015Title: Transport in AnimalsAim: Materials/Apparatus: Slide of blood smear, slide of ureter artery and vein, cows heart, microscope, gloves.

Pic 1. Blood Components showing CentrifugationIntroduction The cardiovascular system of vertebrates contains a muscular heart. This muscular hearts main function is to pump blood around the body. The arteries blood that is usually oxygenated away from the heart and two the body, however, the artery leading to the lungs, know as pulmonary artery carry deoxygenated away from the heart and to the lungs. The veins carry blood that is usually deoxygenated towards the heart, unless it coming from the lungs. The veins coming from the lungs known as pulmonary veins carry deoxygenated blood. The term oxygenated refers to the enrichment of oxygen by the red blood cells (erythrocytes). This oxygen is carried by the haemoglobin in the red blood cells.The red blood cells are located in the connective tissue blood along with white blood cells(leucocytes) and plasma. Red blood cells and white blood cells make up 45% of the blood volume while plasma make up 55% of the volume. The red blood cells and white bloods are found bathed in the fluid matrix plasma.Plasma is a light yellow liquid. It is composed of 90% water and 10% variety of substances in solution and suspension. Some components of plasma include mineral ions such as Sodium ion, Potassium ion, Magnesium Ion, Chloride Ions and Hydrogen Carbonate Ions. Plasma can also contain sugars, fatty acids, amino acids. Plasma can also contain excretory products such as urea and hormones such as insulin.

Pic 2.An erythrocyteRed Blood Cells (erythrocytes) are small cells (average 7-8 microns in size) that dont have nuclei. The cells develop in the bone marrow and circulate for about 100120 days in the body before their components are recycled by macrophages. The lack of nuclei allows space for more haemoglobin. There are circular biconcave discs. Each cell is very thin and allows for faster and efficient gaseous exchange. The shape makes it really flexible and this gives the ability to squeeze through capillaries. Red blood cells consist of protein pigments, haemoglobin which carry oxygen and it gives blood its red color. Red blood cells dont have mitochondria either so they respire anaerobically by the Embden-Meyerhof pathway. Since they dont respire aerobically they dont use any of the oxygen they carry. The haemoglobin combines reversibly with oxygen to form oxy haemoglobin nearest the lung and releases the concentration of oxygen is lower. Red blood cells live a span of three months. Without a nucleus they cannot be repaired.

White Blood Cells (leucocytes) are slightly larger than red blood cells and are not as abundant and contain nuclei. All leukocytes are produced and derived from a in the bone marrow known as a hematopoietic stem cell. They are involved in protecting the body against infectious diseases and foreign invaders. Leucocytes are capable of amoeboid movement and this allows them to squeeze through pores in capillary walls to reach the tissues and sites of infection Leucocytes make up approximately 1% of the total blood volume in a healthy adult. The number of leucocytes in the blood is often an indicator of disease.After centrifugation white cells are found in the buff, a thin white layer of cells between the blood plasma layer and the red blood cells. All white blood cells are nucleated. Apart from this common trait the blood cells are distinct in form and function. According to Taylor, Green, Stout and Soper (2001), white blood cells can be categorized into two groups Granulocytes and Agranulocytes. Granulocytes (Polymorphonuclear Leucocytes) are made in the bone marrow and are distinguish by the presence of granules in their cytoplasm. The nucleus can take various shapes and are usually lobed into two or three segments. Granulocytes can be further subdivided into neutrophils, eosinophils and basophils. The most abundant being the neutrophilsNeutrophils are normally found in the bloodstream and are phagocytic. Neutrophils live approximately six days. After treating an infection neutrophils do not return to the blood they turn into pus cells and die. Mature neutrophils have a nucleus with several sections usually two to five segments, each section is connected by chromatin filaments.Neutrophils actively engulf and digest disease causing bacteria. Neutrophils have two types of granules; primary granules and specific granules. Primary granules contain proteins that break down and kill bacteria. Lysozymes found in the cells are used to break down bacterial cell walls.Eosinophils usually have kidney-shaped lobed nuclei. They make up 1.5% of the total number of white cells. They possess cytoplasmic granules that stain red when the dye eosin is applied to them. They possess anti-histamine properties running counter to basophils. Eosinophils play an important role in killing parasites because the granules contain a toxic protein and cationic protein. They regulate other immune cell functions such as basophils, neutrophils, B cells and dendritic cells. They are involved in the destruction of tumor cells and wrote the repair of damaged tissueBasophils make up 0.5% of the total number of white cells, thus, are the least abundant. Basophils also have lobe nuclei. The granules in these cells stain blue with basic dyes such as methylene blue. The granules of basophils are usually so numerous they partially cover the nucleus. Basophils release histamine and other mediators of inflammation. When an infection occurs mature basophils will be released from the bone marrow and travel to the site of infection. Histamine causes dilation and increased permeability of capillaries close to the basophil. The basophil also releases substances that increase the blood flow to the site of infection so that platelets can reach to the infected site faster.Agranulocytes are also known as mononuclear leucocytes, these have one-lobed nucleus and are without granules in their cytoplasm. They make up 28% of the white blood cell population. These can be further subdivided into monocytes and lymphocytes. A third type of agranulocyte, the macrophage, is formed in the tissue when monocytes leave the circulation.Lymphocytes make up 24% and these are produced in the thymus gland and lymphoid tissues from cells which originate in the bone marrow. They are much more common in the lymphatic system. The blood has two types of lymphocytes: B cells and T cells. B cells make antibodies and bind to pathogens enabling destruction. T cells are able to kill cells of the body that are infected by a virus. T cells possess a memory system which allows them to remember past invaders and prevent disease when a similar invader is encountered again.Monocytes, along with neutrophils compose the phagocytic leucocytes. They make up 4%. They present pieces of pathogens to T cells so that the pathogens may be recognized again and killed, or so an antibody response can be created. Monocytes are also known as macrophages after they migrate from the bloodstream and enter tissue.

The blood vessels transport blood throughout the human body. The major types of blood vessels: the arteries(carries blood away from heart), the veins (carries blood towards the heart) and capillaries ( enable the actual exchange of water, gas and other chemicals between blood and the tissues). The arteries and veins have three layers but the tunica media of the artery is thicker.

Pic 3.Diagram Showing Connection Between Vein,Capillary and ArteryTunica intima (the thinnest layer): a single layer of simple endothelial cells glued by a polysaccharide intercellular matrix, Tunica media (the thickest layer in arteries): circularly arranged elastic fiber, connective tissue, contains polysaccharide substances. The tunica media may (especially in arteries) be rich in vascular smooth muscle, which controls the diameter of the vessel.Tunica adventitia: (the thickest layer in veins) entirely made of connective tissue. It also contains nerves that supply the vessel as well as nutrient capillaries in the larger blood vessels.Capillaries consist of little more than a layer of endothelium.The veins and arteries consist of a space where the blood flows know as lumen. This can be used to differentiate between the two. The lumen of the artery is smaller to maintain the pressure so the blood can flow to the parts of the body more efficiently. The lumen of the vein is larger, it does not require pressure for the movement of the blood because it is in no rush The veins contain valves that prevent the backflow of blood. Muscle contraction around the veins helps one-way flow of blood towards the heart. Only arteries nearest to the heart have valves which help to maintain a continuous flow.Capillaries are the smallest blood vessels in the body. They form networks of vessels coming in contact with every cell of the body. No cell is more than 25 micrometers away from the capillaryThe human heart is situated between two lungs and behind the sternum in the thorax. It consists of four chambers the right and left atria and the right and left ventricle. The atria receives blood from the veins and pump it to the ventricles which pump the blood to the arteries. The walls of the ventricles are thicker than the walls of the atria. The double circulation of the heart consists of a pulmonary circulation and a systematic circulation. To and from the lungs is known as pulmonary circulation whilst circulation around the body is known as systematic circulation.Discussion:(Drawings)The first slide observed was the blood smear slide so search for both erythrocytes and leucocytes, permitted to draw only two leucocytes. . The leucocytes observed were both granulocytes namely basophil and eosinophils. Both granulocytes were beside each other.The basophil was expected to have granules and a lobed nucleus. This was what was observed. The granules were so numerous in the cytoplasm it was really difficult to see the nucleus properly. The eosinophils had two lobed nuclei. It contain granules but less numerous than that of the basophil granulocyte. Also, the granules in the basophil were larger than those in the eosinophilBoth granulocytes were easy to distinguish.The second slide was labeled ureter vein and artery. This was a cross section. The vein and artery were laid side by side on the slide. The expected image was that the tunica media artery would be larger than that of the vein and also the lumen of the artery would be smaller or more constricted that the vein. This was seen and observed also. All three layers of the blood vessel could be identified. The tunica intima was observed in both artery and vein, being a single epithelial layer. The nucleus for the cells in the tunic intima could be observed and they were distinctly round in shape.The vein was slightly larger than the vein in size, the vein being 266 micrometers while the artery was 125 micrometers even though the tunica media of the artery was larger and thicker. Around tunica adventitia was a jelly-like looking layer which was discovered to be an extension of the tunica adventitia layer itself. The tunica intima layer was also observed to have an almost similar jelly-looking substance around the cells which were discovered to be a polysaccharide intercellular matrix that acted as glue for the endothelial cells.The tunica media muscles appeared circular in muscles wrapping around the tunica intima and lumen. This may be justified by the fact that the tunica media is needed to control the diameter of the lumen.

The cows heart was observed. It was dissected in half and observed by the entire class. It was expected to see clearly the right and left sides of the heart showing all four chambers but this was not the case. The cows heart was not cut properly and it ended up covering most of the left side of the heart including the left atrium and left ventricle. Apart from that everything else was seen clearly and the right side of the heart was easily seen. It was not how much thicker the left side of the heart was. The left side along with the septum left the right side of the heart with only about a quarter of the space. This may be justified by the fact that the heart belonged to a cow. A cows body would be larger in comparison to a human and so the blood would need to travel a longer distance, thus the muscles of the left side of the heart are much more developed to aid in the rapid and forceful pumping of the blood around the cows body. The aorta was identified because it was the thickest and largest blood vessel attached to the heart. Through discussion and observation it was deduced that blood would flow from the left ventricle to this blood vessel and therefore it was identified as the aorta.The chordae tendineae of the bicuspid valve was identified and observed as well. For color contrast, The muscles were darker than the blood vessel apart from the pulmonary artery. The darkening of the pulmonary artery could just be degradation because the heart was old. Inside the chambers of the heart was slightly darker than the muscles itself.The erythrocyte was observed, it was easy to discover. It was expected that, like the drawings usually seen, the red blood would have been completely red in color. However, upon observing the red blood cell it was noticed that the center of the red blood cell was clear, this was identified to be the vacuole of the cell.

Errors: Heart was incorrectly dissected.Precautions: Gloves were worn when dealing with the heart to protect from harmful bacteria.Limitation: Heart was incorrectly dissected, left side of the heart could not be seen properly

Conclusion: The blood vessels, the Cows heart and the Erythrocytes and Leucocytes were observed and drawn.