Digestive System Flashcards
What are the 6 main processes of Digestion?
Ingestion
Secretion
Mixing and propulsions
Digestion
Absorption
Defecation
What organs are used in the process of Digestion?
Mouth
Pharynx
Oesophagus
Liver
Stomach
Duodenum
Pancreas
Gall Bladder
Traverse colon
Descending/ascending colon
sigmoid colon
cecum
rectum
anus
jejunum
ileum
What are the 4 different layers of the GI Tract?
submucosa
mucosa
muscularis
serosa
What does the mucosa contain?
epithelium
areolar connective
tissue
muscle layers
What does the muslularis contain?
circular muscle
longitudinal muscle
What is the Pharynx?
A funnel shaped tube composed of skeletal muscle and lined my mucous membrane
What is the Esophagus?
muscular tube that connects the pharynx to the stomach
What happens in the stages of swallowing?
- the tongue shapes the lubricated food and moves it to the back of the oral cavity
- the tongue rises against the palate and closes the nasopharynx
- the uvula and soft palate seal off the naval cavity
- the epiglottis covers the larynx (breathing is temporarily interrupted) - at each end of the oesophagus, the muscularis forms 2 sphincters:
- upper oesophageal sphincter (consisting of skeletal muscles)
- lower oesophageal sphincter (smooth muscle) - swallowing moves a bolus from the mouth to the stomach (via peristalsis)
voluntary stage - mouth to oropharynx
involuntary stage - pharyngeal stage
What does the stomach connect?
oesophagus to duodenum
what are the 4 regions of the stomach?
- cardia
- fundus
- body
- pylorus
What is rugae?
folds in the stomach lining, its surface is made up of epithelial cells, it has glands that produces mucous, hydrochloric acid, pepsin, intrinsic factors (Intrinsic factors include the genetic, physiological, and pathological characteristics of an individual) and gastrin
What is mechanical digesiton?
mixing waves that macerate food and mix it with gastric juice forming chyme
Where is the pancreas?
lies behind the stomach
What does the pancreas secrete and where do the secretions go?
secretes pancreatic juice that contains:
- enzymes
- proteins
- triglycerides
- nucleic acids
the secretions pass from the pancreas to the duodenum
What is the relationship between the liver and the gallbladder?
- the gallbladder is located in a depression under the liver
- it stores and concentrates bile produced by the liver
- bile contributes to digestion by emulsifying lipids
What are the functions of the liver?
- secretion of bile
- phagocytosis of bacteria
- carb, lipid, protein metabolism
- processing of drugs and hormones
- excretion of bilirubin
- storage of vitamins and activation of vitamin D
What is the average length and width of the small and large intestines?
small intestine:
- 1 inch in diameter and 10 ft in length
large intestine:
- 2.5 inches in diameter and 5 ft in length
What is the structure of the small intestine?
- extends from the ileocecal sphincter to the pyloric sphincter
- divided into the duodenum, jejunum, ileum
- microvilli, villi and circular folds provide a large surface area
What is the structure of the large intestine?
- extends from ileocecel sphincter to the anus
- includes cecum, colon, rectum and anal canal
- divided into ascending, transverse, descending and sigmoid portions
What are the 3 phases of digestion?
- cephalic phase
- gastric phase
- intestinal phase
What happens in the cephalic phase?
- smell, sight, sound or thought of food activates neutral centers in the brain
- salivary glands secrete saliva and gastric glands secrete gastric juice
What happens in the gastric phase?
- presence of food in stomach causes gastric phase
- promotes gastric juice secretion + gastric motility
- pyloric sphincter relaxes which promotes gastric emptying
What happens in the intestinal phase?
- begins when food enters small intestine
- gastric motility and secretion decrease
- prevents Small intestine from being overloaded with more chyme it can handle
- all coordinated by hormones secretin and cholecystokinin
Gastrin?
Where is it produced?
What is its stimulant?
What is its action?
Produced:
- stomach mucosa (pyloric region)
Stimulant:
- stretching of the stomach
- partially digested proteins and caffeine in stomach
- high pH of stomach chyme
Action:
- stimulates secretion of gastric juice
- increases motility of GI tract
- relaxes pyloric sphincter