The term "siphon" is used for a number of structures in human and animal anatomy, either because flowing liquids are involved or because the structure is shaped like a siphon, but in which no actual siphon effect is occurring: see Siphon (disambiguation).
There has been a debate if whether the siphon mechanism plays a role in blood circulation. However, in the closed loop of circulation this was discounted; "In contrast, in closed systems, like the circulation, gravity does not hinder uphill flow nor does it cause downhill flow, because gravity acts equally on the ascending and descending limbs of the circuit", but for "historical reasons", the term is used. One hypothesis (in 1989) was that a siphon existed in the circulation of the giraffe. But further research in 2004 found that, "There is no hydrostatic gradient and since the fall of fluid does not assist the ascending arm, there is no siphon. The giraffe’s high arterial pressure, which is sufficient to raise the blood 2 m from heart to head with sufficient remaining pressure to perfuse the brain, supports this concept." However, a paper written in 2005 urged more research on the hypothesis: