Digestive System Flashcards
gastrointestinal tract
organ system responsible for transporting and digesting foodstuffs, absorbing nutrients, and expelling waste.
oral cavity
he cavity of the mouth
hard palate
the bony front part of the palate.
soft palate
the fleshy, flexible part toward the back of the roof of the mouth.
uvula
a fleshy extension at the back of the soft palate that hangs above the throat.
lingual frenulum
is a small fold of mucous membrane extending from the floor of the mouth to the midline of the underside of the tongue.
pharynx
the membrane-lined cavity behind the nose and mouth, connecting them to the esophagus.
esophagus
the part of the alimentary canal that connects the throat to the stomach; the gullet. In humans and other vertebrates it is a muscular tube lined with mucous membrane.
mucosa
a mucous membrane.
submucosa
the layer of areolar connective tissue lying beneath a mucous membrane.
muscularis externa
region of muscle in many organs in the vertebrate body, adjacent to the submucosa.
serosa
the tissue of a serous membrane.
visceral peritoneum
the part of the peritoneum that lines the abdominal viscera—compare parietal peritoneum.
parietal peritoneum
is that portion that lines the abdominal and pelvic cavities. Those cavities are also known as the peritoneal cavity.
mesentery
fold of the peritoneum that attaches the stomach, small intestine, pancreas, spleen, and other organs to the posterior wall of the abdomen.
stomach
the internal organ in which the major part of the digestion of food occurs, being (in humans and many mammals) a pear-shaped enlargement of the alimentary canal linking the esophagus to the small intestine.
cardioesophageal sphincter
pertaining to the cardia of the stomach and the esophagus, as the cardioesophageal junction or sphincter.
pyloric sphincter
is a band of smooth muscle at the junction between the pylorus of the stomach and the duodenum of the small intestine
rugae
series of ridges produced by folding of the wall of an organ.
greater curvature
the boundary of the stomach that forms a long usually convex curve on the left from the opening for the esophagus to the opening into the duodenum—compare lesser curvature.
lesser curvature
he boundary of the stomach that in humans forms a relatively short concave curve on the right from the opening for the esophagus to the opening into the duodenum—compare greater curvature.
greater omentum
is a large apron-like fold of visceral peritoneum that hangs down from the stomach.
chyme
the pulpy acidic fluid that passes from the stomach to the small intestine, consisting of gastric juices and partly digested food.
small intestine
the part of the intestine that runs between the stomach and the large intestine; the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum collectively.