DIGESTION IN GI TRACT

A) Hydrolysis
Definition: A chemical reaction in which a water molecule is needed to break up a complex
molecule into small molecule
i. Carbohydrates
Converted into monosaccharides
Specific enzyme in digestive juice of GI
tract return the hydrogen & hydroxyl ions
from water to polysaccharides separate
the monosaccharides
ii. Proteins
Proteolytic enzymes return hydrogen & hydroxyl
ions from water molecules to protein molecules
split into constituent amino acid

iii. Fats
Fat-digesting enzymes return 3 molecules of water to
triglyceride molecule split fatty acid
molecules away from glycerol

B) Digestion
i. Carbohydrates
Diet
- 3 major sources : sucrose, lactose & starches
- Cellulose : cannot be considered as human food
Digestion in mouth & stomach Digestion in small
intestine
A) Digestion by pancreatic amylase
When food is chewed, it is Pancreatic secretion contain large
mixed with saliva, which
quantity of -amylase (several times
contain enzyme ptyalin (-
amylase) secreted mainly by more powerful)
parotid glands. Within 15-30 minutes after chime
empties from stomach into duodenum
& mixes with pancreatic juice
Hydrolyzes starch into B) Hydrolysis of disaccharides & small
disaccharide
glucose polymers monosaccharides by
intestinal epithelial enzymes
However,food remains in Enterocytes contain 4 enzymes
mouth only for a short
time( not more than 5% lactase, sucrose, maltase & -
will be hydrolyzed) dextrinase.
Enzyme are located in enterocytes
Starch digestion continues in covering the intestinal microvilli brush
body & fundus of stomach for border, so disaccharides are digested
1 hour before mixed with as they come in contact with these
gastric secretions enterocytes.

Salivary amylase activity is

blocked by acidic gastric
secretions

30%-40% of starches will

have been hydrolyzed
mainly to maltose

Seldom
80
>10%%
 ii. Protein
Dietary proteins are chemically long chains of amino acids bound together by peptide
linkages.
Characteristics are determined by: types & sequential arrangements of AA
Digestion in stomach
- Pepsin is most active at pH 2.0 3.0 & is inactive at a pH >5.0
When it is mixed with
Gastric glands of
stomach contents & with
parietal cells secrete
secretions from non-
HCl
parietal cells
(pH 0.8)
(pH 2-3)

- Pepsin has ability to digest collagen

Collagen is a major constituent of intercellular CT of meats
For the digestive enzymes to penetrate meat, it is necessary for collagen fibres
to be digested.
Most digestion results from actions of pancreatic proteolytic amylase
- Occur in upper small intestine (duodenum & jejunum)
- Major proteolytic enzymes: trypsin, chymotrypsin, carboxypolypeptidase &
proelastase
- Only a small percentage of protein are digested to their constituent AA.
Most remain as dipeptides & tripeptides.

Digestion of peptides by peptidases

in enterocytes
- Enterocytes line villi of duodenum & jejunum of small intestine.
They have brush border, which consists of hundreds of microvilli, which contain
peptidases.
- 2 types of important peptidase enzymes
i) Aminopolypeptidase
ii) Several dipeptidases

Both AA + Finally, inside the

dipeptides & cytosol of
tripeptides are enterocyte are Within minutes,
Pass on through
easily transported multiple other dipeptides &
to the other side
through peptidases, which tripeptides are
of enterocyte
microvillar are specific for digested to single
blood circulation
membrane to remaining types AA
interior of linkages
enterocyte between AA.

>99% of the final protein digestive products absorbed in the form of individual
AA.
Only rare absorption of peptides
Very, very rare absorption of whole protein molecules serious
allergic/immunological disturbances
 iii. Fats
Diet
- Most abundant : neutral fats (triglycerides 1 glycerol & 3 fatty acids)
- Neutral fat is a major constituent in animal origin food
- In usual diet, there are also small quantities of phospholipids, cholesterol & its
esters.
Digestion in stomach
- A small amount of triglycerides is digested in stomach by lingual lipase
(secreted by lingual glands in mouth & swallowed with saliva).
- Amount of digestion is <10% & generally unimportant.
Digestion in intestine
Emulsification by bile acids & lecithin
o Physically break the fat globules into small size water-soluble digestive
enzymes (lipase enzyme) can act on globule surfaces.
Triglycerides are digested by pancreatic lipase
M ost occurs in
Begins by agitation in
duodenum under M ake the fat globules
stom ach to m ix fat w ith
influence of bile (bile readily fragm entable
products of stom ach
salt & phospholipid by agitation w ith water
digestion
lecithin)
o Present in high quantities in pancreatic juice
o Enough to digest within 1 minute all triglyceride that it can reach
o Enterocytes of small intestine contain additional lipase (enteric lipase), but
this is usually not needed.
End products are free fatty acid

Bile salts form micelles that accelerate fat digestion

- Bile salts (when in high enough concentration in water) have propensity to
form micelles
o Small spherical, cylindrical globules 3 -6 nanometer
o Composed of 20-40 molecules of bile salt
- These develop because each bile salt molecule is composed of :
i. sterol nucleus (highly fat-soluble)
ii. polar group (highly water soluble)
- Bile salt micelles act as a transport medium to carry monoglycerides & FFA to
the brush borders of intestinal epithelial cells fat absorbed into blood bile
salts are released to be re-use.
Digestion of cholesterol esters & phospholipids
- Cholesterol esters free cholesterol + 1 molecule of fatty acid
Phospholipid also contain free cholesterol
- Hydrolyzed by 2 lipase in pancreatic secretion
i. Cholesterol ester hydrolase
ii. Phospholipase A2
- Essentially, no cholesterol is absorbed without bile salt micelles function