What are Capillaries? Capillary Microcirculation . Capillaries are essential for the delivery of oxygen to the tissues and the exchange of nutrients between blood and interstitial fluid surrounding the cells. Blood vessels Arteries. 5 Answers. Capillary walls are thin and are composed of endothelium (a type of simple squamous epithelial tissue). Wiki User. Have thick muscular and elastic walls to pump and accommodate blood Have thin walls - have less muscular tissue than arteries A type of supporting tissue called connective tissue provides strength They are very small blood vessels found throughout your entire body. Waste products such as carbon dioxide and urea can diffuse back into the blood to be carried away for removal from the body. Carry blood away from the heart (always oxygenated apart from the pulmonary artery. 1 decade ago. The thin walls of the capillaries are composed of a single layer of endothelial cells. Oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients, and wastes are exchanged through the thin walls of the capillaries. Waste products such as carbon dioxide and urea can diffuse back into the blood to be carried away for removal from the body. Likewise, carbon dioxide is carried by your blood to the blood vessels in the alveoli where it diffuses through the thin walls and into the air in your lungs. As the blood flowing through the veins does nat have *** much pressure as in that of the arteries their walls are thinner as compared to artery walls . 2009-09-30 15:49:13 2009-09-30 15:49:13. because the preasure is so low the wall doesn't need to be thick. -If the capillaries did not have thin walls, the gases could not diffuse through, which would be difficult to carry out their functions. Capillaries. Some veins, particularly veins in the legs, have valves in them, to prevent blood from flowing backward. -The function of capillaries is to allow food and oxygen to diffuse to cells while waste is diffused from cells.-Therefore; they need to be thin walled for these functions. Why do capillaries need to be thin-walled? Top Answer.
- The walls of veins are thinner than the walls of arteries, as the blood they receive from the capillaries is at a much lower pressure. Capillaries have very thin walls comprised only of endothelial cells, which allows substances to move through the wall with ease. This layer is so thin that molecules such as oxygen, water and lipids can pass through them by diffusion and enter the tissues. The walls of capillaries are made up of a thin cell layer called endothelium that’s surrounded by another thin layer called a basement membrane. Answer Save. This function is well supported by the anatomy of the vessels. Capillaries have thin walls to optimise the level of diffusion of oxygen and other nutrients in the blood stream to the surrounding cells. The walls of the arteries are found to be thicker than that of a vein because the blood that is carried from the heart to the capillaries has more high pressure. Veins have much thinner walls than do arteries, largely because the pressure in veins is so much lower. Favorite Answer . Veins can widen (dilate) as the amount of fluid in them increases. Capillaries and Their Functions. Sinusoid capillaries allow for the exchange of large molecules, even cells. Capillaries play an important role in microcirculation. Capillaries: Capillaries are an important part of your circulatory system. Relevance. Have thick elastic and muscular walls. However, the cross-sectional area of capillaries within an average size muscle would be larger than that of the Aorta .