Digestive System: Anatomy and Physiology

Functions: 1. Take in food. Food and water are taken into the body through the mouth. 2. Break down the food. The food that is taken into the body is broken down during the process of digestion from complex molecules to smaller molecules that can be absorbed. 3. Absorb digested molecules. The small molecules that result from digestion are absorbed through the walls of the intestine for use in the body. 4. Provide nutrients. The process of digestion and absorption provides the body with water, electrolytes, and other nutrients such as vitamins and minerals. 5. Eliminate wastes. Undigested material, such as fiber from food, plus waste products excreted into the digestive tract are eliminated in the feces.

Gastrointestinal tract refers to the stomach and intestines. Digestive tract is a tube extending from the mouth to the anus, plus the associated organs, which secrete fluids into the digestive tract. Four Layers/tunics of the Digestive tract 1. Mucosa Innermost tunic; consists of mucous epithelium. 2. Submucosalies just outside the mucosa. It is a thick layer of loose connective tissue containing nerves, blood vessels, and small glands. 3. Muscularis consists of an inner layer of circular smooth muscle and an outer layer of longitudinal smooth muscle. 4. Serosa/adventitia outermost tunic.

Peritoneum: Serous membranes cover the body wall of the abdominal cavity and the abdominal organs. Two types: 1. Visceral peritoneum serous membrane that covers the organs 2. Parietal Peritoneum serous membrane that lines the wall of the abdominal cavity. Anatomy of the Oral cavity: Oral cavity/mouth is the first part of the digestive tract. It is bounded by the lips and cheeks and contains the teeth and tongue. Buccinator muscles are located within the cheeks and flatten the cheeks against the teeth. The lips and cheeks are important in the process of mastication or chewing. They help manipulate the food within the mouth and hold the food in place while the teeth crush or tear it. Mastication begins the process of mechanical digestion, in which large food particles are broken down into smaller ones. Tongue is a large, muscular organ that occupies most of the oral cavity. It moves food in the mouth and, in cooperation with the lips and cheeks, holds the food in place during mastication. It also plays a major role in the process of swallowing. It is a major sensory organ for taste.

Teeth:
There are 32 teeth in the normal adult mouth, located in the mandible and maxillae. Quadrants of the teeth 1. 2. 3. 4. Each quadrant contains: 1. 2. 3. 4. one central and one lateral incisor one canine first and second premolars first, second, and third molars (wisdom teeth) Right upper Left upper Right lower Left lower

The teeth of adults are permanent or secondary teeth. Most of them are replacement of the 20 primary or deciduous teeth (milk teeth) which are lost during childhood. Each tooth consists of a: 1. crown 2. neck 3. root Dentin is a living, cellular, bonelike tissue that surrounds the pulp cavity (center of the tooth). Enamel an extremely hard, acellular substance that covers the dentin of the tooth crown. It protects the tooth against abrasion and acids produced by bacteria in the mouth. Cementum is the surface of the dentin in the root which helps anchor the tooth in the jaw. Palate and Tonsils: The palate is the roof of the oral cavity. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity and prevents food from passing into the nasal cavity during chewing and swallowing.

Two parts: 1. Hard palate is the anterior part that contains bone. 2. Soft palate is the posterior part that consists of skeletal muscle and connective tissue The uvula is a posterior extension of the soft palate. The tonsils are located in the lateral posterior walls of the oral cavity, in the nasopharynx, and in the posterior surface of the tongue.

Salivary Glands: Salivary glands produce saliva, which is a mixture of serous (watery) and mucous fluids. Saliva helps the oral cavity moist and contains enzymes that begin the process of chemical digestion. Three pairs of Salivary Glands 1. Parotid glands- the largest of the salivary glands. They are serous glands located just anterior to each ear. Parotid ducts enter the oral cavity adjacent to the second upper molars. 2. Submandibular glands- produce more serous secretions. The submandibular ducts open into the oral cavity on each side of the frenulum of the tongue. 3. Sublingual glands- the smallest of the three paired salivary glands. They produce primarily mucous secretions. They lie below the mucous membrane in the floor of the oral cavity.

Secretions of the Oral Cavity: Saliva is secreted at the rate of approximately 1 liter per day. The serous part of saliva, produced mainly by the parotid and submandibular glands, contains a digestive enzyme called salivary amylase, which breaks downs starch and other polysaccharides to produce maltose and isomaltose. Maltose and isomaltose have a sweet taste; thus the digestion of polysaccharides by salivary amylase enhances the sweet taste of food. Saliva contains lysozyme, an enzyme that has an antibacterial action. The mucous secretions of the submandibular and sublingual glands contain a large amount of mucin, a proteoglycan thatv gives a lubricating quality to the secretions of the salivary glands. Pharynx: The pharynx connects the mouth with esophagus. It consists of three parts: the nasopharynx, oropharynx, and laryngopharynx. Normally, only the oropharynx and the laryngopharynx transmit food. Esophagus: The esophagus is a muscular tube that extends from the pharynx to the stomach. It is about 25 centimeters long and lies anterior to the vertebrae and posterior to the trachea within the mediastinum. The esophagus transports food from the pharynx to the stomach. Upper and lower esophageal sphincters, located at the upper and lower ends of the esophagus, respectively, regulate the movement of food into and out of the esophagus. The lower esophageal sphincter is sometimes called the cardiac sphincter. Deglutition: Deglutition is also known as swallowing.

Stomach: The stomach is an enlarged segment of the digestive tract in the left superior part of the abdomen. It functions primarily as storage and mixing chamber for ingested food. As food enters the stomach, it is mixed with stomach secretions to become a semifluid mixture called chime. It has large folds called rugae which allow the mucosa and submucosa to stretch. The opening from the esophagus into the stomach is called cardiac opening because it is near the heart. Four Regions of the Stomach 1. 2. 3. 4. Cardia- the region of the stomach around the cardiac opening Fundus- most superior part of the stomach Body- largest part of the stomach Pylorus- the region of the stomach near the pyloric opening

Pyloric opening is the opening from the stomach into the small intestine. It is surrounded by a relatively thick ring of smooth muscle called the pyloric sphincter.

Five Types of Cells in the Gastric Glands 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Surface mucous cells produce mucus, which coats and protects the stomach lining. Mucous neck cells produce mucus Parietal cells produce hydrochloric acid and intrinsic factor Endocrine cells produce regulatory hormones Chief cells produce pepsinogen, a precursor of the protein-digesting enzyme pepsin.

Secretions of the Stomach: A thick layer of mucus lubricates and protects the epithelial cells of the stomach wall from the damaging effect of the acidic chime and pepsin. Hydrochloric acid produces a pH of about 2.0 in the stomach. Pepsinogen is converted by hydrochloric acid to the active enzyme pepsin. Pepsin breaks down proteins to form smaller peptide chains. Pepsin exhibits optimum enzymatic activity at a pH of about 2.0. The low pH also kills microorganisms. Intrinsic factor binds with Vitamin B12 and makes it more readily absorbed in the small intestine. Vitamin B12 is important in DNA synthesis and RBC production.

Two Types of Movement in the Stomach: 1. Mixing waves is the result of relatively weak contractions which thoroughly mix ingested food with stomach secretions to form chime. 2. Peristaltic waves is the result of stronger contractions which force the chime toward and through the pyloric sphincter. Small Intestine: The Small Intestine is about 6 meters long. It is the major site of digestion and absorption of food. The common bile duct from the liver and pancreatic duct from the pancreas join each other and empty into the duodenum. Three parts: 1. Duodenum is about 25 cm long 2. Jejunum is about 2.5 m long 3. Ileum is about 3.5 m long

Four major cell types of the Small Intestine 1. 2. 3. 4. Absorptive cells produce digestive enzymes and absorb digested food Goblet cells produce a protective mucus Granular cells help protect the intestinal epithelium from bacteria Endocrine cells produce regulatory hormones

The junction between the ileum and the large intestine is the ileocecal junction. It has a ring of smooth muscle, the ileocecal sphincter, and an ileocecal valve, which allows material contained in the intestine to move from the ileum to the large intestine. Movement in the Small Intestine: Peristaltic contractions proceed along the length of the intestine and cause chyme to move along the small intestine. Liver: The liver weighs about 1.36 kg (3lb) and is located in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen. It secretes about 700 mL of bile each day. Bile contains no digestive enzymes, but it plays an important role in digestion by diluting and neutralizing stomach acid and by increasing the efficiency of fat digestion and absorption. Bile salts emulsify fats, breaking the fat globules into smaller droplets, much like the action of detergents in dishwater. Bilirubin is a bile pigment that results from the breakdown of hemoglobin. Bile secretion by the liver is stimulated by secretin, which is released from the duodenum. Secretin initiates the release of a watery pancreatic solution that contains a large amount of HCO3-.. Cholecystokinin stimulates the gallbladder to contract and release bile into the duodenum.

Pancreas: The pancreas is located posterior to the stomach in the inferior part of the left upper quadrant. The endocrine part of the pancreas consists of pancreatic islets (Islets of Langerhans) which produce the hormones insulin and glucagon, which enter the blood. Functions of Pancreas: The exocrine secretions of the pancreas include HCO3-, which neutralize the acidic chime that enters the small intestine from the stomach. The major proteolytic (protein-digesting) enzymes are trypsin, chymotrypsin, and carboxypeptidase. These enzymes continue the protein digestion that started in the stomach, and pancreatic amylase continues the polysaccharide digestion that began in the oral cavity. Nucleases are pancreatic enzymes that reduce DNA and ribonucleic acid to their component nucleotides. Large Intestine: Normally 18-24 hours is required for material to pass through the large intestine in contrast to the 3-5 hours required for movement of chyme through the small intestine. While in the colon, chyme is converted to feces. The colon stores the feces until they are eliminated by the process of defecation. Cecum: The cecum is the proximal end of the large intestine and is where the large and small intestines meet at the ileocecal junction. The cecum is located in the right lower quadrant of the abdomen. Attached to the cecum is a tube about 9 cm long called the appendix.

Colon: The colon is about 1.5-1.8 m long and consists of four parts: 1. 2. 3. 4. Rectum: The rectum is a straight, muscular tube that begins at the termination of the sigmoid colon and ends at the anal canal. Anal Canal: The anal canal is the last 2-3 cm of the digestive tract. It begins at the inferior end of the rectum and ends at the anus. The smooth muscle layer of the anal canal forms the internal anal sphincter at the superior end of the anal canal. The external anal sphincter at the inferior end of the anal canal is formed by skeletal muscle. Ascending colon Transverse colon Descending colon Sigmoid colon