What is the foramen ovale? What is its fate after birth?

What will be an ideal response?


The foramen ovale is a temporary opening in the wall separating the right and left atria of the heart of a fetus. It allows oxygenated blood (originally from the umbilical vein) from the inferior vena cava to pass directly from the right atrium to the left atrium of the heart and thus bypass the lungs. After birth, it closes and becomes the fossa ovale.

Anatomy & Physiology

You might also like to view...

Possible causes of respiratory acidosis include fever, anxiety, and aspirin poisoning

a. True b. False Indicate whether the statement is true or false

Anatomy & Physiology

A cartilage forming cell is known as a _____.

a) hemocytoblast b) osteoblast c) fibroblast d) chondroblast

Anatomy & Physiology

Which of the following are involved in the initiation step of translation? select all that apply.

a) mRNA b) DNA c) RNA polymerase d) ribosomal subunits e) methionine f) initiator tRNA

Anatomy & Physiology

The __________ are the photoreceptors responsible for night vision.

Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).

Anatomy & Physiology