What is the function of the atria?

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The atria act as the heart’s receiving chambers. Their main job is to collect blood returning to the heart from the body and lungs and then move that blood into the ventricles through the atrioventricular valves. The right atrium gathers deoxygenated blood from the body via the superior and inferior vena cavae and the coronary sinus, while the left atrium collects oxygenated blood from the lungs via the pulmonary veins. From there, the ventricles take over to propel blood to the lungs (right ventricle) or to the rest of the body (left ventricle). The heart’s electrical impulses are generated and coordinated by the conduction system, not by the atria themselves.