Atrial volume receptors (also known as Veno-atrial stretch receptors) are low pressure

baroreceptor Baroreceptors (or archaically, pressoreceptors) are sensors located in the carotid sinus (at the bifurcation of external and internal carotids) and in the aortic arch. They sense the blood pressure and relay the information to the brain, so that ...

s that are found in the atria of the heart. They are myelinated vagal fibres in the

endocardium The endocardium is the innermost layer of tissue that lines the chambers of the heart. Its cells are embryologically and biologically similar to the endothelial cells that line blood vessels. The endocardium also provides protection to the va ...

found at the junction between atria and the vena cava/pulmonary vein. When these receptors detect a blood volume increase in the atria, the atrial stretch triggers the release of Atrial Natriuretic Peptide (ANP), and a signal is transmitted from the receptors to the

hypothalamus The hypothalamus () is a part of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus ...

in the brain. The ANP causes increased natriuresis, while the hypothalamus, in turn, decreases the production of vasopressin (ADH, AVP, or arginine vasopressin). These receptors also cause a renal vasodilation, resulting in increased diuresis. This decreases the blood volume, resulting in the decrease of blood pressure. There are two types, type A is activated by atrial wall tension in atrial contraction (during the a wave of the atrial pressure curve), type B is activated by atrial stretch during atrial filling (with the v pressure wave). They can display

hysteresis Hysteresis is the dependence of the state of a system on its history. For example, a magnet may have more than one possible magnetic moment in a given magnetic field, depending on how the field changed in the past. Plots of a single component of ...

References

Cardiac anatomy Blood pressure {{circulatory-stub

See also

References