Lecture 16 - GI Physiology (through slide 44) Flashcards
Layers of the Gut Tract Wall
Outer to inner: 1.Serosa 2.Longitudinal smooth muscle layer 3.Myentericplexus (of Auerbach) 4.Circular smooth muscle layer 5.Meissner’s plexus (submucosal plexus) 6.Submucosa 7.Mucosa
Serosa:
- Outer layer of connective tissue and simple squamous epithelium
- Continuous with mesentery
- Pathway for blood vessels to gut tube
- Missing in some parts (i.e., esophagus):
- Replaced with adventitia connecting to abdominal wall
Submucosa:
Incorporates blood vessels and submucosal plexus
Mucosa:
- Forms a continuous sheet lining entire G.I. tract.
- Loose CT with sensory nerves, blood vessels and some glands
- Includes muscularis mucosa:
- Thin layer of smooth muscle
- Creates mucosal ridges and folds
Propulsive movements:
- Stimulation at any point in the gut can cause a contractile ring to occur.
- Contractile ring moves forward after it appears.
- Usual stimulus is distension.
- May also occur due to chemical or physical irritation or strong parasympathetic signals.
- Requires presence of functional myenteric plexus.
- Can occur in any direction but usually dies out when traveling in an oral direction.
Mixing movements:
- May be caused by peristaltic contractions themselves.
* At other times local intermittent constrictive contractions occur every few centimeters in the gut wall.
Slow Waves
Complex interactions among the smooth muscle cells and the interstitial cells of Cajal(smooth muscle cell electrical pacemakers).
•Cells of Cajal undergo cyclic changes that periodically open and produce inward (pacemaker) currents that may generate slow wave activity.
•Slow waves set baseline for ___. •Slow waves are NOT action potentials. •Slow waves are slow, oscillating potentials inherent to the smooth muscle itself in some parts of the digestive tract and spread through ___.
intermittent spike potentials
gap junctions
•Slow waves occur ___. •Slow waves originate in ___ (pacemakers). •Intensity varies between ___ mv. •Frequency ranges from 3 to 12 per minute (increases from stomach to duodenum). •Slow waves set the ___ of contraction for each part of the GI tract.
spontaneously
interstitial cells of Cajal
5-15
maximum frequency
Spike Potentials
- Action potentials.
- Spike potentials excite muscle contraction.
- Occur automatically when resting membrane potential of GI smooth muscle becomes more positive than -40 mv.
- The higher the slow wave potential, the greater the frequency of the spike potentials.
- Last 10-40 times as long as a typical action potential in a large nerve fiber (10-20 ms).
- Spike potentials are responsible for opening calcium-sodium channels in GI smooth muscle cells.
- Channels open and close slowly.
Factors that Cause Depolarization
- Stretching of muscle
- Stimulation by acetylcholine (parasympathetic)
- Lack of sympathetic stimulation
- Stimulation by specific GI hormones
Factors that Cause Hyperpolarization
Norepinephrine and epinephrine (sympathetic)
Causes of Tonic Contractions
- Continuous repetitive spike potentials
- Hormones
- Continuous entry of calcium ions
Pattern of Motility
- Local stimulus like stretch from bolus
- Opens sodium channels
- Slow waves pass locally through gap junctions
- Spikes occur causing action potentials
Types of gastrointestinal reflexes
- Reflexes that are integrated entirely within the gut wall enteric nervous system
- Reflexes from the gut to the prevertebral sympathetic ganglia and then back to the GI tract
- Reflexes from the gut to the spinal cord or brain stem and then back to the GI tract
Reflexes that are integrated entirely within the gut wall enteric nervous system control:
- Much of the GI secretion
- Peristalsis
- Mixing contractions
- Local inhibitory effects
Reflexes from the gut to the prevertebral sympathetic ganglia and then back to the GI tract:
- Transmit signals long distance to other areas of the gut tract
- Cause evacuation of the colon (gastrocolicreflex)
- Inhibit stomach motility and secretion (enterogastricreflex)
- Empty ileal contents into the colon (colonoileal reflex)
Four official GI hormones
- Gastrin
- CCK (cholecystokinin)
- Secretin
- Gastric Inhibitory Peptide (GIP)