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lungs, elastic organs used for breathing in vertebrate animals, excluding most fish, which use gills, and a few amphibian species that respire through the skin. The word is sometimes applied to the respiratory apparatus of lower animals.
The human lungs are paired organs, located on either side of the heart and occupying a large portion of the chest cavity from the collarbone to the diaphragm. Air enters the body through a series of passages, beginning with the nose or mouth. It travels to the chest cavity through the trachea, which divides into two bronchi, each of which enters a lung. The bronchi divide and subdivide into a network of countless tubules. The smallest tubules, or bronchioles, enter cup-shaped air sacs known as alveoli, which number about 700 million in both lungs. Each alveolus is surrounded by a net of capillaries. As blood flows through these vessels, carbon dioxide passes into the alveoli, and oxygen diffuses into the bloodstream. The capillaries are part of a vast network of pulmonary blood vessels that connect the lungs directly to the heart via the large pulmonary arteries and veins. The alveoli are clustered in groups, or lobules, and the lobules are clustered into lobes.
In humans, the left lung has two lobes; the right lung three. The lungs are covered by a thin membrane called the pleura.They are expanded and contracted (thereby inhaling and exhaling air) by the combined movement of the diaphragm and the rib cage, which is alternately raised (expansion) and lowered (contraction) by the chest muscles. In recent years, smoking has been found to cause severe and sometimes fatal diseases of the lung, such as cancer and emphysema. Pneumonia is an inflammation of the lung tissue caused by various agents or organisms such as viruses. Asthma, a hypersensitivity or allergic response to some stimuli, covers a range of severity and is characterized by bronchial spasms and difficult breathing.
(Text taken from infoplease.com)
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoThe membrane around the lungs is the pleura, which is a serous membrane moistened by serous fluids to reduce friction when the lungs expand and collapse during respiration.
Wiki User
∙ 15y agoPleural Membrane
Wiki User
∙ 14y agopleural membrane or pleura
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∙ 11y agovisceral pleura
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∙ 11y agothe pleura.
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∙ 12y agopleura
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What membrane or sac that encloses each lung is a?
The lung is enclosed by a thin memrane called pleura
What is the membrane that lines the surface of the lungs?
the membrane on the surface of the lung is called the parietal pleura, but the membrance that lines the lungs themselves are called the visceral pleura.
What isThe thin hair attached to the mucous membrane called?
cilia
Pleurisy is named for the pleury membrane Where is this membrane?
Lung
What is serous membrane associated with the lungs?
The outer layer of a serous membrane is called the parietal layer and is always attached to the surrounding tissues. The inner layer is called the visceral layer and is firmly attached to the organ it covers
What is the double layered membrane surrounding each lung?
Pleura is a double layered membrane surrounding each lung.
The serous membrane on the lung surface is called the what?
Pleural Cavity is the body cavity that surrounds the right and left lung. The pleura is a serous membrane which folds back to form a two-layered, membrane structure. The thin space between the two pleural layers is known as the pleural cavity; it normally contains a small amount of pleural fluid. The outer pleura parietal pleura is attached to the chest wall. The inner pleura, visceral pleura covers the lungs and adjoining structures.
What membrane holds the lungs to the thoracic wall?
The lung is "held" to the thoracic wall by a vacuum or a "potential" space. The thoracic wall has a thin membrane attached to it called the parietal pleura. The lung also has this membrane attached to it but is called the visceral pleura. The two pleura touch each other and slide against each other but are not attached. There is no space between them in the same way there is no space between the sides of a balloon when you suck out the air. If you are stabbed in the chest, an opening is created and air rushes in the hole. The "potential" space becomes an actual space as the lung collapses (a condition called a pneumothorax).
Attached to the membrane by a stalk?
Pedunculated is attached to the membrane by a stalk. Sessile is sitting directly on the mucous membrane. Fissure is a break.
How is the upper surface of fornix is attached to the undersurface of corpus callosum?
by a membrane called septum pellucidum
What would happen if a lung's visceral membrane were pulled away from its parietal membrane still attached to the chest wall?
The connection between the two layers is held together by surface tension. By interfering with this the lungs will not expand with each breath but they will collapse.
What is the double-layered membrane surrounding each lung?
Pleura is a double layered membrane surrounding each lung.
