Tetrapod probably had a three-chambered heart, as do modern amphibians and reptiles, in which oxygenated blood from the lungs and de-oxygenated blood from the respiring tissues enters by separate atria, and is directed via a spiral valve to the appropriate vessel — aorta for oxygenated blood and pulmonary vein for deoxygenated blood. The spiral valve is essential to keeping the mixing of the two types of blood to a minimum, enabling the animal to have higher metabolic rates, and be more active than otherwise. The difference in density between air and water causes smells (certain chemical compounds detectable by chemoreceptors) to
Superior mesenteric vein can be fatal. It is estimated that 10-15% of mesenteric ischemia is due to mesenteric thrombosis. Superior mesenteric vein The superior mesenteric vein (SMV) is a blood vessel that drains blood from the small intestine (jejunum and ileum). At its termination behind the neck of the pancreas, the SMV combines with the splenic vein to form the hepatic portal vein. The SMV lies to the right of the similarly named artery, the superior mesenteric artery, which originates from the abdominal aorta. Tributaries of the superior mesenteric vein drain the small intestine, large intestine, stomach, pancreas and appendix and include: Thrombosis