The human heart is an organ that pumps blood throughout the body via the circulatory system, supplying oxygen and nutrients to the tissues and removing carbon dioxide and other wastes.
"The tissues of the body need a constant supply of nutrition in order to be active," said Dr. Lawrence Phillips, a cardiologist at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York. "If [the heart] is not able to supply blood to the organs and tissues, they'll die."
Human heart anatomy
In humans, the heart is roughly the size of a large fist and weighs between about 10 to 12 ounces (280 to 340 grams) in men and 8 to 10 ounces (230 to 280 grams) in women, according to Henry Gray's "Anatomy of the Human Body."
The physiology of the heart basically comes down to "structure, electricity and plumbing," Phillips told Live Science.
The human heart has four chambers: two upper chambers (the atria) and two lower ones (the ventricles), according to the National Institutes of Health. The right atrium and right ventricle together make up the "right heart," and the left atrium and left ventricle make up the "left heart." A wall of muscle called the septum separates the two sides of the heart.
A double-walled sac called the pericardium encases the heart, which serves to protect the heart and anchor it inside the chest. Between the outer layer, the parietal pericardium, and the inner layer, the serous pericardium, runs pericardial fluid, which lubricates the heart during contractions and movements of the lungs and diaphragm.
The heart's outer wall consists of three layers. The outermost wall layer, or epicardium, is the inner wall of the pericardium. The middle layer, or myocardium, contains the muscle that contracts. The inner layer, or endocardium, is the lining that contacts the blood.
The tricuspid valve and the mitral valve make up the atrioventricular (AV) valves, which connect the atria and the ventricles. The pulmonary semi-lunar valve separates the right ventricle from the pulmonary artery, and the aortic valve separates the left ventricle from the aorta. The heartstrings, or chordae tendinae, anchor the valves to heart muscles.