Gastric Physiology Flashcards
what are the 3 goals of the stomach?
- receive and store food
- control rate of delivery to small intestines
- control consistency of content delivered to small intestines
what are the 3 functions of the stomach?
- storage prior to entry into small intestines
- enzymatic breakdown of feed via pepsin to chyme
- muscular walls to churn and breakdown food
list and describe the 4 cells of the stomach
- parietal cells that release HCl
- chief cells that release pepsinogen that is activated to pepsin by HCl and pepsin degrades protein
- mucous cells that release mucin
- endocrine cells
what volume can the human stomach hold?
4 liters
list and describe the 2 motor units of the stomach
- proximal motor unit: located in the fundus and body, function is storage to accomplish receptive relaxation of the stomach
- distal motor unit: located in the antrum and pylorus, function is mixing, propulsing, and empyting stomach contents to small intestine
what is one of the most important functions of the stomach, especially for predators, and why?
receptive relaxation, super important for predators who eat their prey really fast and then go to safety to digest
list and describe the 2 types of digestion
- Mechanical: Mobility/peristalsis; accomplished by the Myenteric plexus at the Musculosa
- chemical: utilizes Secretions (GI enzymes and GI hormones); accomplished by the Submucosal plexus and local blood flow control
generally describe contractions of the stomach
alternating relaxation and contraction of musculature of stomach, in a wave-like motion called peristalsis that is UNIDIRECTIONAL
describe stomach contraction strength in the fundus versus the distal stomach
starts in the fundus, which has weak muscles and weak contractions; contraction is much stronger in the distal stomach
describe contraction in the distal stomach/moving to small intestines (4)
- increased luminal pressure in the pylorus
- pyloric sphincter relaxes to allow contents into duodenum
- mixing of contents allows smaller pieces through first
- mixing and emptying occurs until stomach is empty
when does the pyloric sphincter relax
when the stomach contracts to allow chyme to flow from stomach to small intestine
what defense do predators who eat bones have against the undigestible bones?
vomiting
what are interstitial cells of cajal, where are they located, and what do they do?
located throughout the entire muscularis of the stomach; are pacemaker cells like the SA node of the heart that initiate the oscillations in membrane potential that occur in smooth muscle cells (between circular and longitudinal layers of t. muscularis)
what causes the action potential of the interstitial cells of cajal? what does the number of action potentials depend on?
hormone release opens calcium channels in these cells, allowing calcium to flow into the muscle cell and induce contractions; number of APs depends on neural and hormonal effects
how does the autonomic nervous system innervate the stomach?
paraympathetic: via the vagus nerve (CNX)
sympathetic: via the greater splanchnic nerve (from the thoracic spine)