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Understanding the Lymphatic System

The lymphatic system removes excess fluid from tissues and returns it to the bloodstream. It is a drainage subsystem of the circulatory and immune systems. The lymphatic system picks up 15% of fluid that remains in tissues after the circulatory system exchanges nutrients and wastes through capillaries. Lymph vessels carry this fluid through lymph nodes, which filter the fluid and help fight infection, before returning it to the bloodstream via the subclavian veins. In this way, the lymphatic system helps maintain fluid balance and supports the immune system.

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Lizbeth Quinn Batangoso
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61 views2 pages

Understanding the Lymphatic System

The lymphatic system removes excess fluid from tissues and returns it to the bloodstream. It is a drainage subsystem of the circulatory and immune systems. The lymphatic system picks up 15% of fluid that remains in tissues after the circulatory system exchanges nutrients and wastes through capillaries. Lymph vessels carry this fluid through lymph nodes, which filter the fluid and help fight infection, before returning it to the bloodstream via the subclavian veins. In this way, the lymphatic system helps maintain fluid balance and supports the immune system.

Uploaded by

Lizbeth Quinn Batangoso
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Lymphatic System

In a nutshell, the lymphatic system is a drainage system that removes excess fluid from body
tissues and returns it to the bloodstream. It is actually a subsystem of both the circulatory and immune
system.

The major purpose of the circulatory system is to bring oxygen and nutrients to body tissues and remove
wastes.

This exchange happens in the smallest blood vessels called the capillaries.

Blood plasma containing nutrients moves out of capillaries at the arterial end of capillary beds, while
tissue fluid containing wastes reabsorbs back in at the venous end.

However, not all of the fluid is drawn back to the bloodstream at this point. About 15% of it is left in the
tissues and would cause swelling if accumulated.

This is where the lymphatic system comes into play, it picks up the excess fluid and returns it to the
circulatory system. Unlike the blood circulatory system, which is a closed loop, the lymphatic system is a
one-direction, open-ended network of vessels.

Lymphatic vessels begin as lymphatic capillaries made of overlapping endothelial cells. The overlapping
flaps function as a one-way valve. When fluid accumulates in the tissue, interstitial pressure increases
pushing the flaps inward, opening the gaps between cells, allowing fluid to flow in.

As pressure inside the capillary increases, the endothelial cells are pressed outward, closing the gaps,
thus preventing backflow. Unlike blood capillaries, the gaps in lymphatic capillaries are so large that they
allow bacteria, immune cells such as macrophages, and other large particles to enter. This makes the
lymphatic system a useful way for large particles to reach the bloodstream. It is used, for example, for
dietary fat absorption in the intestine.

Once inside lymphatic vessels, the recovered fluid is called lymph.

Lymph flow is enabled by the same forces that facilitate blood flow in the veins. It goes from lymphatic
capillaries to larger and larger lymphatic vessels and eventually drains into the bloodstream via the
subclavian veins. On the way, it passes through a number of lymph nodes, which serve as filters,
cleansing the fluid before it reaches the bloodstream.

Lymph nodes are small bean-shaped structures scattered throughout the lymphatic network. They are
most prominent in the areas where the vessels converge.

Lymph nodes contain macrophages and dendritic cells that directly “swallow up” any pathogens, such as
bacteria or viruses, that may have been taken up from an infected tissue.

They also contain lymphocytes: T-cells and B-cells, which are involved in adaptive immune response, a
process that produces activated lymphocytes and antibodies specific to the invading pathogen.

These are then carried by the lymph to the bloodstream to be distributed wherever they are needed.

The lymphatic system also includes lymphoid organs.


Primary lymphoid organs – the thymus and bone marrow, are the sites of lymphocyte production,
maturation and selection.

Selection is the process in which lymphocytes learn to distinguish between self and non-self, so they can
recognize and destroy pathogens without attacking the body’s own cells.

Mature lymphocytes then leave the primary for the secondary lymphoid organs – the lymph nodes,
spleen, and lymphoid nodules - where they encounter pathogens and become activated.

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