19. Chapter 21- The Digestive System Flashcards
What is the primary function of the digestive system?
Move nutrients, water and electrolytes from the external environment into the body’s internal environment
Main thing needed for regulation and integration of metabolic processes throughout the body
Proper functioning needed for homeostasis
10% of health care costs are GI system
What is the anatomy of the digestive system?
What is the GI tract?
Extends from mouth to large intestine (15 feet length average)
GI tract: long tube with muscular walls lined by transporting and secretory epithelial (digestion primarily occurs here)
Stomach to anus is the gut!
So it’s mouth to anus
What do the three pairs of salivary glands do with the beginning of digestion in the mouth? (4 things)
- Moisten and lubricate food
- Amylase partially digests polysaccharides
- Dissolve some food molecules (taste)
- Lysozyme kills bacteria
Slide 5 Feb 25
What is the esophagus?
What parts are skeletal and smooth muscle?
Passageway from mouth to stomach
Upper and lower esophageal sphincters
Top 1/3 is skeletal muscle, bottom 2/3 is smooth muscle
Moves food via peristaltic waves
Slide 6 Feb 25
What is the small intestine? (3 parts)
What is the large intestine? (3 parts)
Small intestine- majority of digestion takes place here
First 25 cm is duodenum
Then jejunum
Then ileum
Slide 7 Feb 25
Large intestine- (colon) larger diameter but shorter, made of ascending colon, transverse colon, and descending colon
Water and electrolytes removes to create semisolid feces
Feces entering the terminal section of the large intestine (rectum) trigger a defecation reflex
What are the GI layers? (4 of them)
Slide 9-10 Feb 25!
Slide 9-10 Feb 25 Mucosa Submucosa Muscularis externa Serosa
What is mucosa?
What’s it made of? (3 things)
First layer of GI tract
Epithelium- transporting epithelial cells, endocrine and exocrine secretory cells, shirt life span always making new cells
Lamina propia- contains nerve fibres, small blood vessels and lymph vessels
Muscularis mucosae- thin layer of smooth muscle that can alter surface area available for absorption
Slide 11-12 Feb 25
What is the submucosa?
Seconds part of GI tract below mucosa
Middle distensible layer containing larger vessels (lymph and blood) and the submucosal plexus; one of the major nerve networks in the enteric nervous system
Slide 15 Feb 25
What is the muscularis externa?
What is the serosa?
Muscularis externa: 2 layers of smooth muscle: circular decrease diameter, longitudinal shortens the tube, contains myenteric plexus
Serosa- outer covering of connective tissue that is a continuation of the peritoneal membrane, sheets of mesentary hold intestines in place
Slide 16 Feb 25
What are the 4 steps of the digestive function and processes?
- Digestion- chemical and mechanical breakdown of food into absorbable units
- Secretion- movement of material from cells into lumen or ECF
- Absorption- movement of material from GI lumen to ECF
- Motility- movement of material through the GI tract as a result of muscle contraction
Slide 17 Feb 25
What are the 3 fluid secretions?
Water- ions transported from ECF into the lumen
Digestive enzymes- exocrine glands and epithelial cells in stomach and small intestine
Mucus- viscous glycoprotein (mucins) secretions that protect GI cells and lubricate the contents
What is motility in the digestive system?
- Moves food from mouth to anus
- Mechanically mixing food breaks it into uniformly small particles
This is determined by properties of smooth muscle and modified by chemical input
Slow waves originate in a network of cells known as interstitial cells of cajal (ICC)
Modified smooth muscle cells serve as pacemaker for slow wave activity
What are the 3 basic patterns of contraction that occur in the GI system bringing about different types of movement?
- Migrating motor complex (motilin)
Between meals
Begins in the stomach and slowly passes from section to section, sweeps food remnants and bacteria out of upper GI tract and into the large intestine - Peristaltic contractions- responsible for forward movement
- Segmental contractions- responsible for mixing
Slide 9-10 Feb 27
What are enteric nervous system (ENS) reflexes? (Short and long reflexes)
Short reflexes originate in the enteric nervous system and are carried out entirely within the wall of the gut
Long reflexes are integrated in the CNS, some long reflexes originate outside the GI tract but others originate in the enteric nervous system
What are GI peptides?
Hormones, peptides and cytokines
Can act as hormones or paracrine signals
Excite or inhibit motility and secretion
Can be secreted in to lumen to act on apical membrane receptors or ECF to act on neighbouring cells
What are the 3 hormone families?
Gastrin family- gastrin, cholecystokinin
Secretin family- secretin, vasoactive intestinal peptide, gastric inhibitory peptide
Other- motilin