Which part of the circulatory system specifically transports oxygen to tissues?

The arteries are responsible for transporting oxygen-rich blood away from the heart to the various tissues and organs throughout the body. After oxygen is absorbed in the lungs, it enters the left side of the heart, where it is pumped into the aorta and then distributed via the branching network of arteries. These vessels facilitate the delivery of oxygen directly into the capillaries, from where the oxygen is exchanged with carbon dioxide and other waste products at the cellular level.

While the aorta is a major artery that carries oxygenated blood, it represents only one part of the larger arterial system. The role of veins is primarily to return deoxygenated blood back to the heart. Capillaries, on the other hand, are the sites of exchange between blood and tissues but do not transport oxygen on their own; they function more as the transfer point where oxygen is delivered from the blood to the cells. Thus, while all these components are essential for circulation, it is specifically the arteries that are tasked with the delivery of oxygen from the heart to the body.