Major Organ Systems

System

Organs in the System

Some Major Functions of the System

Cardiovascular

  1. Heart

  2. Blood vessels (arteries, capillaries, veins)

Pumps blood and circulates it throughout the body

Respiratory

  1. Nose

  2. Mouth

  3. Pharynx

  4. Larynx

  5. Trachea

  6. Bronchi

  7. Lungs

Adds oxygen to the blood (and removes carbon dioxide from the blood)

Nervous

  1. Brain

  2. Spinal cord

  3. Nerves (both those that carry impulses to the brain and those that carry impulses from the brain to muscles and organs)

Directs intentional (and many automatic) actions of the body

Enables thinking, self-awareness, and emotions

Skin

  1. Skin (both the surface that is generally thought of as skin and the underlying structures of connective tissue, including fat, glands, and blood vessels)

Provides barrier protection between the inside of the body and the external environment

Musculoskeletal

  1. Muscles

  2. Tendons and ligaments

  3. Bones

  4. Joints

Provides structure and allows motion of the body

Blood

  1. Red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets

  2. Plasma (the liquid part of blood)

  3. Bone marrow (where blood cells are produced)

  4. Spleen

  5. Thymus

Transports oxygen and nutrients to all the cells of the body (and removes carbon dioxide and waste products)

Digestive

  1. Mouth

  2. Esophagus

  3. Stomach

  4. Small intestine

  5. Large intestine

  6. Rectum

  7. Anus

  8. Liver

  9. Gallbladder

  10. Pancreas (the part that produces enzymes)

  11. Appendix

Extracts nutrients from foods

Excretes waste products from the body

Endocrine

  1. Thyroid gland

  2. Parathyroid gland

  3. Adrenal glands

  4. Pituitary gland

  5. Stomach (the cells that produce gastrin)

  6. Pineal gland

  7. Ovaries

  8. Testes

Produces chemical messengers carried in the blood (hormones), which direct the activities of different organ systems

Urinary

  1. Kidneys

  2. Ureters

  3. Bladder

  4. Urethra

Filters waste products from the blood

Male reproductive

  1. Penis

  2. Prostate gland

  3. Seminal vesicles

  4. Vasa deferentia

  5. Testes

Enables reproduction

Female reproductive

  1. Vagina

  2. Cervix

  3. Uterus

  4. Fallopian tubes

  5. Ovaries

Enables reproduction

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