BIOL 252 Human Anatomy and Physiology II:
Module 3 Cardiovascular System (The Heart)
Comprehensive Exam
SECTION I: HEART ANATOMY AND HISTOLOGY
1. What is the name of the double-walled sac that encloses the heart?
Answer: The pericardium.
2. Which layer of the heart wall is the thickest and composed primarily of cardiac
muscle?
Answer: The myocardium.
3. What is the term for the serous fluid found within the pericardial cavity, and what is its
function?
Answer: Pericardial fluid; it acts as a lubricant to reduce friction between the visceral
and parietal pericardial layers during heartbeats.
4. Name the four chambers of the heart.
Answer: Right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, left ventricle.
5. Which structure separates the right and left ventricles internally?
Answer: The interventricular septum.
6. What are the pectinate muscles, and where are they primarily found?
Answer: Ridges of muscle tissue located in the auricles and the anterior wall of the right
atrium.
, 7. Which valves prevent backflow of blood from the ventricles into the atria?
Answer: The atrioventricular (AV) valves (tricuspid and mitral/bicuspid valves).
8. What are the chordae tendineae, and what is their functional relationship to the
papillary muscles?
Answer: Tough fibrous cords that anchor the AV valve flaps; they are attached to
papillary muscles, which contract to prevent the valves from everting into the atria
during ventricular systole.
9. Which valve guards the opening between the right ventricle and the pulmonary trunk?
Answer: The pulmonary semilunar valve.
10. What is the primary difference in wall thickness between the right and left ventricles,
and why does this difference exist?
Answer: The left ventricle has a much thicker wall because it must pump blood through
the entire systemic circulation against high resistance, whereas the right ventricle only
pumps to the nearby lungs.
11. What is the name of the remnant of the fetal foramen ovale found in the adult heart?
Answer: The fossa ovalis.
12. Which vessels deliver deoxygenated blood from the systemic circulation into the
right atrium?
Answer: The superior vena cava, inferior vena cava, and coronary sinus.
13. How many pulmonary veins return oxygenated blood to the left atrium?
Answer: Four.
Module 3 Cardiovascular System (The Heart)
Comprehensive Exam
SECTION I: HEART ANATOMY AND HISTOLOGY
1. What is the name of the double-walled sac that encloses the heart?
Answer: The pericardium.
2. Which layer of the heart wall is the thickest and composed primarily of cardiac
muscle?
Answer: The myocardium.
3. What is the term for the serous fluid found within the pericardial cavity, and what is its
function?
Answer: Pericardial fluid; it acts as a lubricant to reduce friction between the visceral
and parietal pericardial layers during heartbeats.
4. Name the four chambers of the heart.
Answer: Right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, left ventricle.
5. Which structure separates the right and left ventricles internally?
Answer: The interventricular septum.
6. What are the pectinate muscles, and where are they primarily found?
Answer: Ridges of muscle tissue located in the auricles and the anterior wall of the right
atrium.
, 7. Which valves prevent backflow of blood from the ventricles into the atria?
Answer: The atrioventricular (AV) valves (tricuspid and mitral/bicuspid valves).
8. What are the chordae tendineae, and what is their functional relationship to the
papillary muscles?
Answer: Tough fibrous cords that anchor the AV valve flaps; they are attached to
papillary muscles, which contract to prevent the valves from everting into the atria
during ventricular systole.
9. Which valve guards the opening between the right ventricle and the pulmonary trunk?
Answer: The pulmonary semilunar valve.
10. What is the primary difference in wall thickness between the right and left ventricles,
and why does this difference exist?
Answer: The left ventricle has a much thicker wall because it must pump blood through
the entire systemic circulation against high resistance, whereas the right ventricle only
pumps to the nearby lungs.
11. What is the name of the remnant of the fetal foramen ovale found in the adult heart?
Answer: The fossa ovalis.
12. Which vessels deliver deoxygenated blood from the systemic circulation into the
right atrium?
Answer: The superior vena cava, inferior vena cava, and coronary sinus.
13. How many pulmonary veins return oxygenated blood to the left atrium?
Answer: Four.
