Question

Which vertebrate organ receives only oxygenated blood?
(a) Gill
(b) Lung
(c) Spleen
(d) Liver

Answer 1

Hint: The organ plays no part in purification or respiration. It is located in the upper left abdominal quadrant. It is primarily responsible for filtering out the blood, i.e. removing dead RBCs and blood pathogens. It is called the graveyard of RBC.

Complete step by step answer:
Only the spleen and brain are getting oxygenated blood at all times. The spleen does not have any role in the purification of deoxygenated blood. It only receives oxygenated blood from the heart through the splenic artery. The splenic artery branches off the aorta and celiac trunk to carry oxygenated blood to the spleen, while the splenic vein brings deoxygenated blood away from the spleen to the hepatic vein.

- Gills and lungs are the organs that purify the blood, i.e. here the blood becomes oxygenated and these two organs still get deoxygenated blood.
- The liver is a part of the hepatic portal system, where the hepatic portal vein carries food- laden blood from the food channel and related glands before eventually returning to the heart.
- The liver gets two sources of blood supply. The first is the hepatic artery from the general circulation which supplies oxygenated blood. The second is the hepatic portal vein that carries deoxygenated blood from the nutrient- rich small intestine. The blood passes through the liver tissue to the hepatic cells where there are various metabolic functions. The blood flows into the hepatic vein, from the liver.
So, the correct answer is, ‘(c) Spleen’.

Note: The spleen is the largest organ in the lymphatic system and battles infection and holds our body fluids in equilibrium. It includes specific white blood cells that battle germs, i.e. the "kupffer cell”. Two separate tissues, white pulp, and red pulp are found in the spleen. The white pulp works in the development and growth of blood and immune cells. The red pulp works to remove antigens, microorganisms and damaged or worn- out red blood cells.