open vascular system
anatomy
Also known as: open circulatory system
Learn about this topic in these articles:
development in animals
- In animal: Water/vascular systems
Most animals have open circulatory systems. Those few animals with closed circulatory systems have a continuous series of vessels to circulate fluid to the vicinity of all cells, whereas those with open systems have vessels only near the heart. (Actually, no system is entirely closed or open.) In…
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fluid circulation
- In circulatory system: Fluid compartments
…invertebrate phyla have an “open” system. In the latter animals, the blood leaving the heart passes into a series of open spaces, called sinuses, where it bathes internal organs directly. Such a body cavity is called a hemocoel, a term that reflects the amalgamation of the blood system and…
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