Digestive system

Question 1

digestion

Answer 1

breakdown of food into a form that can be used by an animal. It includes both mechanical digestion and chemical digestion.

Question 2

mechanical digestion

Answer 2

digestion that uses physical factors such as chewing with the teeth

Question 3

chemical digestion

Answer 3

the chemical reactions changing food into simpler substances that are absorbed into the bloodstream for use in other parts of the body

Question 4

alimentary canal

Answer 4

passage from the mouth to the anus. Digestion of food occurs as it moves through the canal.

Question 5

enzymes

Answer 5

special chemicals that speed up reactions but are themselves not used up in the reaction

Question 6

saliva

Answer 6

watery substance in the mouth that moistens food before swallowing

Question 7

salivary glands

Answer 7

glands in the mouth that produce saliva

Question 8

bolus

Answer 8

round, chewed-up ball of food made in the mouth that makes swallowing easier

Question 9

oesophagus

Answer 9

part of the digestive system composed of a tube connecting the mouth with the stomach

Question 10

peristalsis

Answer 10

the process of pushing food along the oesophagus or small intestine by the action of muscles

Question 11

stomach

Answer 11

a large muscular organ that churns and mixes food with gastric juice to start to break down protein

Question 12

small intestine

Answer 12

the part of the digestive system between the stomach and large intestine, where much of the digestion of food and absorption of nutrients takes place

Question 13

absorption

Answer 13

the taking in of a substance, for example from the intestine to the surrounding capillaries

Question 14

villi

Answer 14

tiny finger-like projections from the wall of the intestine that maximise the surface area of the structure to increase the efficiency of nutrient absorption. Singular = villus.

Question 15

nutrient

Answer 15

substances that provide energy and chemicals that living things need to stay alive, grow and reproduce

Question 16

bile

Answer 16

a substance produced by the liver that helps digest fats and oils

Question 17

gall bladder

Answer 17

a small organ that stores and concentrates bile within the body

Question 18

lipids

Answer 18

type of nutrients that include fats and oils

Question 19

lipases

Answer 19

enzymes that break fats and oils down into fatty acids and glycerol

Question 20

amylases

Answer 20

an enzyme in saliva that breaks starch down into sugar

Question 21

proteases

Answer 21

enzymes that break proteins down into amino acids

Question 22

pancreas

Answer 22

a large gland in the body that produces and secretes the hormone insulin and an important digestive fluid containing enzymes

Question 23

colon

Answer 23

the part of the large intestine where a food mass passes from the small intestine, and where water and other remaining essential nutrients are absorbed into the body

Question 24

large intestine

Answer 24

the penultimate part of the digestive system, where water is absorbed from the waste before it is transported out of the body

Question 25

vitamin D

Answer 25

a nutrient that regulates the concentration of calcium and phosphate in the bloodstream and promotes the healthy growth and remodelling of bone

Question 26

cellulose

Answer 26

a natural substance that keeps the cell wall of plants rigid

Question 27

rectum

Answer 27

the final section of the digestive system, where waste food matter is stored as faeces before being excreted through the anus

Question 28

anus

Answer 28

the final part of the digestive system, through which faeces are passed as waste

Question 29

emulsify

Answer 29

combine two liquids that do not normally mix easily