Digestive System

Announcements
 Exams

 Lab notes will be on reserve in library and

on the web
Goals of the Digestive System
1. Extract nutrients from food

2. Transform nutrients into useful forms

Ex- oreo= glucose

3. Absorb nutrients and distribute them

where they are needed
 Functions of the Digestive
System
 Ingestion: intake of nutrients

 Digestion: breakdown of large particles into

smaller ones

 Absorption: uptake of nutrient molecules

 Defecation: elimination of undigested residues

 Actions of the Digestive
System
1. Motility
- Breaks up food
- Moves food through the GI tract (Peristalsis)
- Mixes with digestive enzymes
2. Secretion
- Release of enzymes and hormones for chemical
digestion and regulation
3. Membrane Transport
- Absorption of nutrients from the tissues by the
blood and lymph for transport
 Stages of Digestion
 Mechanical: physical breakdown of food

 Chemical: digestive enzymes hydrolyze food

particles to break larger molecules into smaller
ones

 Some nutrients are absorbed with out digestion

– Vitamins, minerals, cholesterol, water
 Anatomy of the Digestive
System
 Oral Cavity
 Pharynx
 Esophagus
 Stomach
 Pyloric Sphincter
 Small Intestine
 Large Intestine
 Accessory Organs

 Teeth
 Tongue
 Salivary Glands

 Liver
 Gall Bladder
 Pancreas
 Oral Cavity
 Functions:
– A. Ingestion: cheeks lips
and tongue mobilize food
– B. Digestion:
 Mechanical
– Mastication
 Chemical
– 3 salivary glands
– Digests some
starches and fat
Pharynx
Motility: pharyngeal
constrictors force food
down during
swallowing
 Esophagus
 www.mywebmd.ca.com

 Straight muscular tube

about 1 foot long
 Motility: muscular
contraction moves
food towards stomach
Heartburn and the Esophagus
Heartburn, “ acid reflux”, is caused by acid and food
going from the stomach into the esophagus

The diaphragm normally prevents acid reflux, in

conjunction with the lower esophageal sphincter.

When this fails, the burning sensation felt is known

as “heartburn”

May be linked to a rare type of cancer,

adenocarcinoma
Stomach
 Muscular sac on the left
side of the peritoneal
cavity

 Functions:
– Food storage
– Mechanical digestion
– Chemical digestion
 Rugae in the Stomach
 http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/digestion

 Rugae- folds in the

stomach lining that
allow it to expand with
more food

 How do we vomit?
 Pyloric Sphincter
http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/digestion

 Ring of smooth
muscle

 Regulates the passage

of material from the
stomach into the
duodenum
 Digestion in the Stomach
 Mechanical Digestion:
– Muscular contraction

 Chemical Digestion:
– Secretes digestive enzymes and HCl
 Small Intestine
 http://www.afns.ualberta.ca/bbo/1/ANATOMY/SI1.asp

 2 meters long, 1 inch

in diameter, 5-6 meters
in cadaver

 Functions:
– Chemical Digestion
– Nutrient Absorption
– Motility
 Anatomy of the Small Intestine
 Duodenum (25 cm):  Fig 25.22
1. Receives stomach
contents, pancreatic
juice and bile
2. Neutralizes stomach
acid and pepsin
3. Pancreatic enzymes
and bile take over
chemical digestion
Anatomy of the Small Intestine
 Jejunum (2.5m)

 Ileum (3.6 m)
– Reabsorbs bile acids
 Functions of the Small
Intestine
Microvilli
 Motility: smooth muscle
contract

 Digestion: chemical
enzymes received from
the pancreas, liver and gall
bladder

 Nutrient reabsorption:
microvilli increase surface
area
Dynamic Human: Microvilli
 Large Intestine
 Functions
– Motility

– Reabsorbtion of Water and Electrolytes

 Symbiotic bacteria
– Synthesis Vitamins B & K
 Anatomy of the Large
Intestine
Transverse Colon: right to left

Ascending Colon: Descending Colon:

up the right side down the left side

Cecum: sac on Sigmoid Colon:

lower right side S-shaped
 Anatomy of the Large
Intestine

 Rectum: straight down

 Anal Canal: out the
body
 Appendix: hangs off
cecum
– Important in Immunity
 Enzymes Involved in
Chemical Digestion
 Saliva:
– Amylase: breaks down starch
– Lipase: breaks down fats when it enters the
stomach
 Low pH of the stomach activates the enzyme
 Enzymes Involved in
Chemical Digestion
• Stomach:
• Digestive chemicals-
• HCL: activates enzymes, breaks up foods
• Pepsin: digests proteins
• Renin: digests milk
 Pepsin Formation
• Interactions between Cells
• Chief Cells make pepsinogen
• Parietal Cells make HCl
• Pepsinogen is cleaved by HCl into Pepsin
Dynamic Human: Pepsin
Formation
 Enzymes Involved in
Chemical Digestion
• Small Intestine
• Two sources of
enzymes

• Liver and Gall bladder

• Pancreas
 Enzymes Involved in
Chemical Digestion in the
Small Intestine
• Liver secretes bile that is active in the small
intestine
• Bile: aids in fat digestion and absorption
•Activates pancreatic enzymes
•Synthesized from cholesterol
•Bacteria in the small intestine use bilirubin to
make your feces brown

• Gall bladder stores and concentrates bile

 Gall Stones
 What is a gall stone?

 How do they treat gall stones?

 How is the gall bladder removed?

 Enzymes Involved in
Chemical Digestion in the
Small Intestine
 Pancreas: secretes pancreatic juice
1. Amylase: breaks down starch
2. Lipase: breaks down fats
3. Ribonuclease (RNAase): breaks down RNA
4. Deoxyribonuclease (DNAase): breaks down
DNA
5. Zymogens: inactive enzymes that activate in the
small intestine
 Mechanism of Absorption
 Membrane Transport:
– Nutrients pass through membrane surface
– The greater the membrane surface area, the
greater the amount of nutrients that can be
transported
 Surface Area
– Rugae
– Microvilli
Final Destinations of Digestion
Products
 Starches  bloodstream

 Fats  lymph vessels (lacteals)

 Proteins  bloodstream
Dynamic Human:
Visualization
 Cat Dissection
 Be able to locate and  Also know accessory
identify organs
– Esophagus – Tongue
– Stomach – Teeth
– Small Intestine – Gall Bladder
– Large Intestine – Liver
 Ascending colon
 Transverse colon
 Descending colon
Conclusion