Gastrointestinal tract Flashcards
What are the three most important types of tissue in the GI tract?
Modified epithelium
Well developed immune system
Stem Cells
What is the role of epithelial lining?
Secretion (mucous, HCl, hormones, enzymes)
Absorption (water, salt, nutrients)
Protection (tight junctions prevent large amounts of paracellular absorption)
What is the immune tissue called in the GI tract?
GALT (gut associated lymphoid tissue)
What are the two types of immune tissue, what are their main features?
Diffuse
Lymphocytes
Specialized dendritic cells
Macrophage subsets
Organised Tonsils Peyer’s patches Lymphoid follicles Appendix or coecal patch Mesenteric lymph nodes. Paneth cells
Other than immune tissue, what are two more protective mechanisms?
Low pH in stomach kills microorganisms
Mucous traps pathogens
After how many days do cells regenerate in the small intestine?
5 days
What cells are an exception to the 5 day regeneration and take longer (how long)?
Paneth cells (up to 30 days)
What are the common four layers of the gut tube?
Mucosa
Submucosa
Muscularis
Serosa
What does the mucosa consist of?
Epithelia lining
Lamina propria
Muscularis mucosae (smooth muscle)
What does the submucosa consist of?
Connective tissue with blood & lymph vessels
Meissner’s (submucosal) Nerve plexus
What does the muscularis consist of?
Circular internal layer
Auerbach’s (myenteric) nerve plexus
Longitudinal external layer
What does the serosa consist of?
Connective tissue with mesothelium covering
Epithelium lining producing lubricating slippery fluid to facilitate movement
How is the muscularis different in the stomach? Why?
Third innermost muscular layer (the internal oblique layer)
Allows the stomach to vigorously churn food for mechanical digestion
What organ notably does not have a muscularis mucosae?
Gall bladder
What branch of the ANS can affect the submucosal plexus vs the myenteric plexus?
Submucosal - PNS only
Myenteric - SNS and PNS
What is Hirschsprungs disease?
Congenital disorder where Auerbach’s nerve cells absent due to failure of neural crest cells to migrate.
Leads to severe constipation.
What epithelium is present in the oesophagus?
Stratified squamous nonkeratinized
What is especially prominent in the mucosa of the oesophagus?
Muscularis mucosae
What is present in the lamina propria in the oesophagus?
Mucus producing cells with secretory granules
Produces mucous to lubricate epithelium
GALT
What are Langerhans cells (oesophagus) where are the dispersed?
Interspersed through epithelium: dendritic cells involved in antigen presentation
What types of muscle are present in the oesophagus, where?
Smooth (lower two thirds) and skeletal (upper third)
What are rugae?
Longitudinal folds of mucosa and submucosa
What are the name of the epithelial invaginations into mucosa (stomach)?
Gastric pits
What lies deep to gastric pits?
Gastric glands
How many gastric glands may empty into one pit?
5-7
What 6 cells are present within the gastric glands/pits?
Surface lining cells
Mucous neck cells
Regenerative (stem) cells
Parietal cells
Chief (zymogenic) cells
Diffuse neuroendocrine (DNES) cells
What is the role of surface lining cells (stomach)?
Manufacture a thick layer of mucus known as visible mucus
Secrete HCO3- so has buffering capacity
What is the role of mucous neck cells (stomach)?
Produce soluble mucus which lubricates chyme different from surface lining cells – soluble and lubricates gastric contents
What is the difference between the mucous produced from surface lining cells and mucous neck cells?
Mucous neck cells produce more soluble lubricating mucous
What shape are mucous neck cells (stomach)?
Mucous neck cells are columnar – but are distorted by pressure from neighbouring cells
How often is gastric mucosa regenerated?
every 5-7 days
What is characteristic (cellular) about a gastric regenerative cell?
Dont have many organelles other than ribosomes in rich supply
Basally located nucleus