Question

What is meant by the dorsal and ventral aspects of the heart?

Answer 1

Heart is a muscular chamber and is present in almost all vertebrates. Its main function is to pump out the oxygenated and deoxygenated blood before it is circulated in the body.

Complete answer:-
Generally, the dictionary meaning of the words 'dorsal' and 'ventral' are 'backside' and 'front side' respectively. The heart is an important part of the circulatory system of most animals, including birds, fishes, reptiles, amphibians, and mammals. In the human circulatory system, the heart is a four-chambered and fist-shaped organ. It is situated in the thoracic cavity. The largest part of the heart is placed slightly towards the left side and remains in between the lungs. The backside of the heart is known as the dorsal side, while the front side towards the chest is called the ventral side. The dorsal surface of the heart lies near the body of the vertebrae, while the ventral surface is constituted with the right ventricle, that faces forward towards the exterior sternum. The main function of the human heart is to pump blood for body circulation. It is also known as double circulation.

Notes:-
-The hearts of fishes are 2-chambered, with an atrium and a ventricle, which pump out the deoxygenated blood. The blood is oxygenated by gills, before circulating in the body. This is known as single circulation.
-In amphibians and most reptiles, hearts are 3-chambered with two atria and a single ventricle. The process of circulation is known as 'incomplete double circulation'.