Evolution of the Circulatory

System
Femi Otulaja, PhD
 Learning Objectives/Outcomes
• Discuss the evolutionary changes in the
architecture of the heart
• Describe the overall function of the circulatory
system
• Compare the internal transport in animals
with no circulatory system, open and closed
circulatory system.
• Compare circulatory systems of difference
species
 Circulation in Unicellular Organisms
• Among the unicellular organisms (ex. protists) oxygen and
nutrients are obtained directly from the aqueous external
environment by simple diffusion.
• The body wall is only two cell layers thick in cnidarians,
such as Hydra, and flatworms, such as Planaria. Each cell
layer is in direct contact with either the external
environment or the gastrovascular cavity
• The gastrovascular cavity of Hydra extends from the body
cavity into the tentacles, and that of Planaria branches
extensively to supply every cell with oxygen and nutrients.

http://slideplayer.com/slide/1739458/
 Types of Circulatory System
There are two main types of circulatory systems:

• Open circulatory system • Closed circulatory system

https://hevansbiochem.wordpress.com/
 Open Circulatory System
• Open circulatory system
– found in mollusks (snails) and arthropods (insects and crustaceans).
– Blood is not restricted to circulate within the blood vessels.
– Blood is pumped by a heart into the body cavities, where tissues are
surrounded (drenched) by blood
– There is no distinction between the circulating fluid (blood) and the
extracellular fluid of the body tissues (interstitial fluid or lymph) –
hence it is called hemolymph.
– There is direct contact between organs and blood (hemolymph)
where nutrients are transferred.
– As the heart beats and the animal moves, the hemolymph circulates
around the organs within the body cavity and then re-enters the
hearts through openings called ostia. This movement allows for gas
and nutrient exchange.
– does not use as much energy as a closed system to operate or to be
maintained.
 Open Circulation – ex. Insects

http://voer.edu.vn/c/flatworms-nematodes-and-
arthropods/a64457a4/e8b33221

https://hevansbiochem.wordpress.com/
http://schoolbag.info/biology/living/190.html
 Closed Circulatory System
closed circulatory system, the
circulating fluid, or blood, is always
enclosed within blood vessels
(tubes) that transport blood from
and back to a pump, the heart.
- found in Annelids (earthworms)
and all vertebrates (chordates -
animals with backbones,
vertebrates).
- In an earthworm, blood is pumped
through five small connecting
arteries which also function as
pumps, to ventral vessels, which But, there are significant
transports the blood posteriorly differences in the structure of
until it eventually re-enters the
dorsal vessel. Smaller vessels the heart and the circulation of
branch from each artery to supply blood between the different
the tissues of the earthworm with vertebrate groups due to
oxygen and nutrients and to adaptation during evolution and
transport waste products associated differences in
anatomy
 Architecture of the heart
• The architecture is difference in the
vertebrates.
– The vertebrate heart has 2 types of chambers: the
atria (atrium) or auricles and the ventricles
(ventricle).
– blood enters the heart through the Atria and is
pumped out of the heart Ventricles.
– Veins take blood back to the heart
– Arteries carry away from the heart
– Blood pressure has to be carefully balanced in all
vessels (tubes) so that flow pressure is maintained
and blood keeps moving.
 Evolution of the Heart
The function of the heart is to pump oxygen to all parts of the body.
The evolution of the heart is based on the separation of oxygenated
blood from deoxygenated blood for efficient oxygen transport

• There are 3 basic types of heart found in animals (vertebrates):

– a 2-chambered heart - one atrium (auricles) and one

ventricle (fish)
– a 3-chambered heart - 2 atria (auricles) and 1 ventricle
(amphibians and reptiles)
– a 4-chambered heart - 2 atria (auricles), 2 ventricles
(crocodiles, birds and mammals)
 The Piscean (Fish) Heart
Ventricle (V)
Sinus
Venosus (SV) Atrium (A) Conus
• Fish has only two chambers arteriosus (CA)

in its heart – one atrium

(auricle) and one ventricle.
Since both the auricle and
the ventricle remain
undivided, only
deoxygenated blood passes
through it. The
deoxygenated blood enters
the gills for oxygenation
from the ventricle. It has
additional chambers such as
sinus venosus and conus
arteriosus

http://esi.stanford.edu/circulation/circulation5.htm
 Amphibian heart
The amphibians have two circulatory
routes: one for oxygenation of the blood
through the lungs and skin, and the other
to take oxygen to the rest of the body.
The blood is pumped from a three-
chambered heart with two atria and a
single ventricle. There is some mixing of
the blood in the heart’s ventricle (inferior
heart chamber), which reduces the
efficiency of oxygenation. The advantage
to this arrangement is that high pressure
in the vessels pushes blood to the lungs
and body. The mixing is mitigated by a
ridge within the ventricle that diverts
oxygen-rich blood through the systemic
circulatory system and deoxygenated
blood to the pulmocutaneous circuit. For
this reason, amphibians are often
described as having double circulation
 Reptilian heart
The reptiles also have two
circulatory routes. However,
blood is only oxygenated
through the lungs. The heart
has three chambers, but the
ventricles are partially
separated so some mixing of
oxygenated and
deoxygenated blood occurs
except in crocodilians and
birds
 The Birds and Mammals Hearts
The birds (avian) and mammals have
the most efficient heart with four
chambers hearts (two atria (auricles)
and two ventricles) that completely
separate the oxygenated and
deoxygenated blood; it pumps only
oxygenated blood through the body
and deoxygenated blood to the lungs.
This improves the efficiency of double
circulation. The four-chambered heart
of birds and mammals evolved
independently from a three-
chambered heart. The independent
evolution of the same or a similar
biological trait is referred to as
convergent evolution
https://cnx.org/contents/WZ9rEzOj@4/Overview-of-the-Circulatory-Sy
 The Mammalian Circulatory System
• The circulatory system, also called the cardiovascular
system or the vascular system, is an organ system
• Transports blood containing nutrients and electrolytes,
oxygen, carbon dioxide, hormones, and blood cells to and
from the cells providing nourishment, helping fight
diseases, stabilize temperature, pH, and maintain
homeostasis.
• The circulatory system is often said to contain two separate
systems - the cardiovascular system and the lymphatic
system.
• The cardiovascular (Latin words meaning "heart" and
"vessel") system comprises the blood, heart, and blood
vessels.
• The lymphatic system comprises the lymph, lymph nodes,
and lymph vessels - returns filtered blood plasma from the
interstitial fluid (between cells) as lymph.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circulatory_system
 The heart

http://medic-on-an-island.tumblr.com/post/54595018898/medicalgif-beating-human-heart-animation-lub
Blood Circulation