The heart is a fundamental organ in the human body as well as in the bodies of all other mammals. For the human being, the heart is found in the thoracic cavity, centrally located behind the breastbone. Though relatively small, the heart is divided into four chambers that coordinate to serve the function of pumping blood. In fact, the heart is entirely made up of muscles that contract and relax rhythmically to pump blood in the circulatory system (Bianco, 2004).
Structurally, the heart has a septum that serves as a line of symmetry, separating the right side from the left side. Each side of the heart has an atrium which is also referred to as the upper chamber and a ventricle which is the lower chamber. Notably, the right ventricle receives blood from the right atrium which collects it from the lungs. On the other hand, the left ventricle receives blood from the left atrium which collects it from the rest of the body (Bianco, 2004). The ventricles show differences in their thickness where the left ventricle is thicker than the right ventricle. The reason for this variation is that the right ventricle pumps blood to the lungs only which is a shorter distance while the left ventricle pumps blood to the rest of the body which is a longer distance. Moreover, for each of these chambers, there are valves that operate in one direction to accomplish the task of preventing the backflow of blood. The valves are known as the tricuspid valve in the right ventricle, the pulmonary valve in the pulmonary artery, the aortic valve in the aorta and the mitral valve in the left ventricle respectively.
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In functionality, the right atrium collects blood that is directed to the heart from the rest of the body and pushes it to the right ventricle. Specifically, the right atrium receives deoxygenated blood through the vena cava and directs it to the right ventricle. Once the blood is in the right ventricle, the ventricle pumps the blood to the lungs through the pulmonary artery. In the lungs, blood oxygenation takes place while waste products and carbon dioxide are removed from the blood (Bianco, 2004). The oxygenated blood leaves the lungs through the pulmonary vein and into the heart through the left atrium. The left atrium collects blood from the lungs to the heart and pushes it to the left ventricle. Particularly, the left atrium receives oxygenated blood through the pulmonary vein and pushes the blood to the left ventricle. The oxygenated blood in the left ventricle is pumped away from the heart to all other body parts. As the blood circulates in the body parts, it delivers oxygen to the body tissues and takes away the waste products and carbon dioxide from the body tissues (Bianco, 2004). The deoxygenated blood travels back to the heart through the vena cava and into the right atrium. The entire cycle keeps on repeating over and over again.
Reference
Bianco, C. (2004). How your heart works.
