Kaplan Prep - Digestive (General) Flashcards
What does heterotrophic mean?
It means that we can’t manufacture our own food.
Where do we get our energy?
By eating food and plants.
What kinds of activities do humans carry out with the food they ingest?
- Walking * Talking * Forming the building blocks needed to grow * Repair tissues
What classification are humans part of?
Omnivores.
What does omnivore mean?
It means that we eat plants and animals.
What are the 4 processes that the human digestive system carries out?
- Takes in food 2. Breaks food down into nutrient molecules 3. Absorbing nutrient molecules into the bloodstream 4. Eliminates indigestible waste
What are the two main divisions of the digestive system organs?
- Alimentary canal (GI Tract) 2. Accessory Digestive Organs
Name the 7 parts of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Mouth 2. Pharynx (Throat) 3. Esophagus 4. Stomach 5. Small Intestine 6. Large Intestine 7. Anus
Name the 6 digestive system accessory organs.
- Teeth 2. Salivary Glands 3. Liver 4. Pancreas 5. Gall Bladder 6. Tongue
Describe the relative length of the Duodenum
It is very small.
Describe the relative length of the Ju Junum
It is much longer than the duodenum. It is the second section
Describe the relative length of the Ileum
It is slightly longer than the jejunum. It is the longest part
What is the name of the valve which is located at the beginning of the small intestine?
Pyloric sphincter valve.
What is the name of the valve which is located at the end of the small instestine?
Ileocecal valve
What are the 3 specialized structures in the wall of the small intestine?
- Circular folds 2. Villi 3. Microvilli
What is the purpose of the 3 specialized structures in the wall of the small intestine?
The purpose of the 3 specialized structures consisting of circular folds, villi and microvill is to greatly increase surface to cause greater absorption of food.
Where is bile formed?
Bile is formed in the liver.
How does bile make its way to the small intestine?
- Bile is formed in the liver. 2. It is stored in the gallbladder. 3. Then it is sent to the duodenum by way of the bile duct
What is the function of bile?
Bile breaks up fat into fat droplets so that they mix with the water and become more easily acted on by enzymes.
What are the 2 major functions of pancreatic juice?
- Pancreatic juice contains sodium bicarbonate, which neutralizes the ph of the chyme and makes it slightly basic.2. The second thing is that it contains enzymes which act on every major component of food.
Describe how fats, sugars and amino acids are absorbed by the small intestine.
They are absorbed by the small instestine since the sugars and amino acids enter villi cells and are then absorbed into the blood stream and the glycerol and fatty acids enter villi cells and are reassembled into fat molecules which move into the lacteals.
What are the 3 functions of the liver that are important in digestion?
- It produces bile, which is stored in the gallbladder before entering the small intestine, where it emulsifies fats.2. It stores glucose as glycogen and breaks down glycogen to glucose between meals to maintain a constant glucose concentration (homeostasis) in the blood.3. It produces urea from amino groups that are removed from excess amino acids.
What are the 8 regions of the large intestine.
1.Cecum 2. Appendix 3. Ascending colon 4. Transverse Colon 5. Descending Colon 6. Sigmoid Colon 7. Rectum 8. Anal Canal
What are the two sphincters of the anal canal?
- Internal (Involuntary) 2. External (Vountary)
What type of muscle is the Internal (Involuntary) Sphincter made of?
It is made of smooth muscle.
What type of muscle is the External (Voluntary) Sphincter made of?
It is made of skeletal muscle.
What are the 4 functions of the large intestine?
- Reabsorbing water 2. Propels Waste 3. Absorbing vitamin K and some B vitamins 4. Reabsorbing electrolytes
What are the 2 major physiological problems caused by diarrhea?
- Dehydration 2. Loss of electrolytes
What are the contents of feces?
- Undigestible plant material * Inorganic material * Intestinal Bacteria * Fats * Waste products such as: Bile Pigments * Mucus * Dead cells from intestinal lining * 25% solid matter * 75% water
What are the 4 main roles that are performed by the digestive system?
- Ingestion 2. Digestion 3. Absorption 4. Defecation
What is the ingestion function performed by digestive system?
Food entering the mouth.
When does the digestion occur?
It is when food is moved, mixed, and exposed to enzymes along the gastrointestinal tract.
What are the two parts of digestion?
- Mechanical Digestion 2. Chemical Digestion
When does the mechanical digestion occur?
It is when food is broken down into smaller pieces. This occurs when the teeth chew food, when the stomach mixes food, and occurs as food is moved along the gastrointestinal tract.
What is chemical digestion?
It is the breakdown of food by enzymes.
What is meant by “absorption” in the digestive system?
It is the process of moving digested food into the bloodstream.
What is defecation?
It is the excretion of indigestible food from the anus
Describe chewing
It is a mechanical digestive process which helps break down food
What is the function of the tongue?
It helps grip the food and move it into position to be chewed.
What is the function of the salivary glands?
It releases the amylase enzyme which starts immediately chemically breaking down starches and sugars
Explain which digestive system functions are carried out by the stomach.
In the stomach mechanical digestion continues as muscles churn and mix the food, breaking it into smaller pieces in the form of chime which is moved to the small intestine by peristalsis. Chemical digestion continues as pepsin digests proteins.
Explain which digestive system functions are carried out by the small intestine.
Chemical digestion continues as enzymes from the pancreatic juices break down starches and proteins, and begin digestion of fat. Mechanical digestion continues as bile breaks down fat into smaller pieces.Absorption begins as digested food molecules, water and fat are absorbed into the bloodstream.
Explain which digestive system functions are carried out by the large intestine.
reabsorbs water and salt absorbs vitamin K, absorbs some b vitamins, groups the remaining waste together, uses peristalsis to get the waste ready to send down the rectum and anus for excretion.
