Skip to content
EasyAnatomyLab
Menu

Middle colic artery: anatomy, location and function

A branch of the superior mesenteric artery supplying the transverse colon. It supplies the transverse colon.

Loading 3D model…
Skin0%
Muscles100%

Structures

Loading… Click the model or search.

Highlighted in the model: Middle colic artery. Click any part to read about it, or switch off “Highlight topic” to see the whole body. 3D data: BodyParts3D, © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0; meshes simplified and recoloured. The model is an adult male.

Middle colic artery at a glance

What it is
A branch of the superior mesenteric artery supplying the transverse colon.
Location
It arises from the superior mesenteric artery just below the pancreas, enters the transverse mesocolon and divides into right and left branches that anastomose with the right and left colic arteries.
Function
It supplies the transverse colon.
Body system
Cardiovascular · single, midline structure
FMA ID
FMA14810 (Foundational Model of Anatomy)

Key facts

  • It contributes to the marginal artery of the colon.
  • Its right branch joins the right colic artery and its left branch the left colic artery, forming part of the marginal artery.

Clinical relevance

It must be preserved or carefully ligated in colon surgery to avoid ischemia.

Structures next to the middle colic artery

The nearest named structures in the 3D model, measured from the centre of each part:

References

  1. Foundational Model of Anatomy: Middle colic artery (FMA14810). EMBL-EBI Ontology Lookup Service.
  2. OpenStax. Anatomy and Physiology 2e, §20.1 Structure and Function of Blood Vessels. Rice University, 2022.
  3. Mitsuhashi N. et al. (2009). BodyParts3D: 3D structure database for anatomical concepts. Nucleic Acids Research 37, D782–D785. Data © The Database Center for Life Science, CC BY 4.0.

Explore the whole body in the interactive 3D human anatomy model, or browse the A–Z list of human structures.