3.11- Placenta

Describe the role of the placenta in the nutrition of the developing embryo 

• When the child is in the uterus, it is surrounded by amniotic fluid.
• It cannot digest, breath or excrete so it gets it's nutrients from the mother through the placenta. 
• The placenta consists of the the umbilical cord containing the embryo's blood vessels. 
• The placenta grows out of the embryo
• It grows into the wall of the uterus
• Glucose, Amino acids and fats travel through the mother's blood vessel
• These will cross into the child's blood at the placenta
• The placenta has a large surface area and the barrier is really thin to make this process efficient
• Carbon Dioxide and Urea are exchanged back into the maternal blood