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Can't Stop My Flow, Anatomy of the Heart and Circulatory System

On the lab tables are dissection dishes burdened with large gray masses, which are covered with damp paper towels. Stations are prepared with tweezers, small surgical priers, sharpie markers, safety goggles and nametags. Students are also provided lab coats.

After picking dissection partners, small teams of partners are paired with college level pre-med student instructors who act as guides and resources during the dissection. The instructors start with a brief review of the anatomy of the eye and the importance and uses of bifocal vision, recalling several points from a previous dissection lab. While students answer questions, they glance at the large covered objects in the middle of their stations. The tension for today's dissection is mounting.

The instructors move on to a brief lecture about the heart and the circulatory system. The heart and circulatory system are responsible for transporting blood throughout the body. Veins carry de-oxygenated blood from organs to the heart. Arteries carry oxygenated blood from the heart to the organs. Mammals have a highly developed circulatory system that relies on four chambers in the heart. The instructors and students carefully diagram the heart's entire anatomy and the direction of blood flow before the dissection is performed.

The dishes are uncovered. Underneath the damp paper towels are hearts from cows and sheep. Latex gloves are distributed. Each heart comes precisely dissected into equal halves. Students use their surgical tools to stick and probe the two halves of the heart. Some push their tools through the aorta and other sections of the heart. They accurately track how each chamber connects to the heart's other complicated features. The instructors move from team to team answering questions and assisting students in identifying a real heart's complex and fascinating anatomy.

To end the laboratory, the instructors distribute preserved pig fetuses. The pig abdomens have been dissected to expose the heart, lungs and other internal organs. The instructors then lead the students through a brief discussion of the exposed anatomy and end with an interactive conversation that puts the functions of the heart and circulatory system into context.

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