Gastrointestinal System Flashcards
Key functions of the GI tract
Digestion - breaking down food & nutrients
Absorption - gets nutrients in the bloodstream
Excretion - Getting rid of digestive waste
Describe the layers of the Gastrointestinal tract from inner to outer layers
Mucosa
Muscularis mucosa
Submucosa
Submucosal plexus (Meissner plexus)
Circular layer of smooth muscle
Myenteric plexus
Longitudinal layer of muscle
Serosa
What does the mucosa layer consist of ?
Epithelium
Lamina propria
Muscularis mucosa
What does the submucosa consist of ?
Blood vessels and nerve bundles that form the submucosal plexus (Meissner plexus)
What is an integral part of the enteric nervous system ?
Meissner plexus
What is the function of the submucosal (Meissner) plexus ?
Regulates intestinal secretions and area specific absorption.
Interacts with blood vessels, circular and longitudinal muscle and muscularis mucosa.
What are the 2 layers in the muscularis externa ?
2 smooth muscle layers :
- Circular muscle
- Longitudinal muscle
What lies between the muscularis externa layers ?
Myenteric plexus
What is the function of the Myenteric plexus ?
Regulates intestinal smooth muscle that helps generate tonic and rhythmic contractions.
What does the serosa consist of ?
Connective tissue
Squamous epithelial cells
Describe the GI tract
Mouth
Oesophagus
Stomach
Small intestine
Large intestine
Anus
Role of the Upper GI tract
(Mouth, Oesophagus, Stomach)
Minimal role in nutrient absorption.
Transports and prepares food to be absorbed.
What are the 2 types of digestion ?
Physical (Mechanical) digestion
Chemical digestion
Mastication
Chewing on food to break it into smaller chunks.
Mechanical digestion
What happens during mastication ?
Tongue mixes food with saliva excreted by the salivary glands. This forms a bolus which is ready to be swallowed.
Where does swallowing take place ?
Through a muscular tube called the oesophagus.
What is the definition of peristalsis ?
Peristalsis is a type of involuntary muscle movement that occurs in your digestive system.
Describe peristalsis
Muscles of the oesophagus contract and PRODUCE A WAVE-LIKE MOVEMENT that pushes food downward into the stomach. This also continues throughout the GI tract.
What happens once food enters the stomach ?
It mixes with gastric juice, consisting of acids and gastric enzymes, which turns the bolus into a pulpy soup called CHYME.
What happens once chyme is produced in the stomach ?
The chyme moves to the 1st past of the small intestine called the DUODENUM , where bile secreted by the liver & pancreatic enzymes DIGEST IT EVEN FURTHER.
The end result is CHYLE, a milky fluid ready to be absorbed.
What is meant by segmentation ?
Mixing chyme with secretions and mucosa
What happens once chyle is produced in the 1st portion of the small intestine ?
The chyle moves to the 2nd portion of the small intestine called the JEJUNUM, which has a specialised mucosa that allows nutrients to be absorbed into the bloodstream by a network of local capillaries.
What happens once the nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream in the 2nd part of the small intestine ?
The food residue keeps moving along the canal by PERISTALSIS.
It moves from the last part of the small intestine called the ILEUM into the large intestine or colon.
The ileum absorbs bile acids, fluid, and vitamin B-12.
What happens in the colon ?
The remaining nutrients and water get absorbed, leaving semi-solid materials, called excrements or feces.
What happens in the last segment of the large intestine (called the rectum) ?
Excrements collect in the rectum which is connected to the anus.
What happens when the rectum is full ?
It sends a message to the brain that triggers the need to defecate, called excretion.
As we get older, what happens to the efficiency of mastication ?
There is a greater risk of choking, as our GI system becomes less efficient and there is a reduction of saliva production as well as dental issues such as tooth loss.
Reduced peristalsis
What are the results of reduced production of gastric juice and bile ?
Reduced efficiency of chemical digestion
Name the 3 major arteries that supply blood to the gut.
Coeliac Artery
Superior mesenteric artery
Inferior mesenteric artery