DIGESTION AND ABSORPTION

- The main function of carbohydrates is to provide your body with energy to support muscular work, brain
activity, breathing and other important activities
- Carbohydrates are made up of sugars known as saccharides
- Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth and I complete when the polysaccharides are broken
down into single sugars, or monosaccharide, which can be absorbed by the body

“HOW ARE CARBOHYDRATES DIGESTED, ABSORBED & ELIMINATED?”

 IN THE MOUTH
 IN THE STOMACH
 IN THE PANCREAS AND SMALL INTESTINE

ENZYMES USED TO BREAK DOWN CARBOHYDRATES

 SALIVARY AMYLASE
 PANCREATIC AMYLASE AND MALTASE
 SUCRASE AND LACTASE
 FIBER

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

• Acts as “disassembly line,” enabling us to acquire nutrients from what we eat

• Nutrients can be energy-yielding or not, but all are necessary for body maintenance, growth,
metabolism, & reproduction

• Major aspects:

– Feeding (food acquisition & ingestion)

– Digestive processes

MECHANISM OF DIGESTION

• Mechanical digestion

– Breakdown of food into smaller bits via teeth/tongue (chewing, or mastication), churning action
of stomach, & rhythmic contractions of the small intestine

• Chemical digestion

– Breakdown of food into smaller bits via digestive enzymes which break (by hydrolysis) chemical
bonds holding basic food units together, e.g. carbohydrates  monosaccharide, proteins 
amino acids

BASIC PROCESSES OF DIGESTION

 Motility (movement)

Muscular Movements w/in digestive tract

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 - Occurs via contractions of smooth muscles around digestive tract (autorythmic – responds to stretching,
etc)
- Influenced by neuronal & hormonal controls

Basic types:
– Peristalsis
– Segmentation

 Secretion
 Digestion
 Absorption

 TYPES OF DIGESTIVE TRACT MOTILITY

• Peristalsis
– Propels contents forward via waves of contractions in adjacent segments (waves of peristaltic
contractions)
• Segmentation
– Mixes contents via simultaneous contractions of multiple non-adjacent segments mechanical
digestion

BASIC ANATOMY

• Digestive system includes the digestive tract plus all accessory organs

ACCESSORY ORGANS / STRUCTURES

• Teeth

• Tongue

• Salivary glands

• Liver

• Gall bladder

• Pancreas

DIGESTIVE TRACT

• Mouth

- Presence of food stimulates salivation

• Esophagus

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 • Gastrointestinal (GI) tract

– Stomach

– Small intestine

– Large intestine (colon)

• Rectum

• Anus

SALIVA

- secreted by salivary glands

- the extrinsic salivary glands – located outside mouth, secretions enter mouth thru ducts
- Also have intrinsic salivary glands in tongue, inside lips, & inside cheeks
- pH 6.8 – 7
- Mostly water
- Electrolytes
- Mucus – lubricates food for easy passage down esophagus
- Antibodies & antibacterial agents
- Lingual lipase – inactive until encounters hi acidity in stomach
- Salivary amylase – initiates carbohydrate digestion

FUNCTIONS
• Assists in swallowing by moistening food
• Begins first stage of carbohydrate digestion
• Kills some bacteria
• Allows taste sensation thru the taste buds
• Neutralizes food acids (via HCO3-)

ESOPHAGUS

• In mouth, food formed into a bolus, then swallowed

• Esophagus = muscular tube w/ primary function of getting bolus to stomach

– NO digestion occurs here!

• Swallowing is complex process coordinated by swallowing center in medulla oblongata

– Bolus enters esophagus  stimulates stretch receptors  (afferent signals) medulla  (efferent
impulses) initiate peristalsis  propels bolus toward stomach

SWALLOWING

• Misdirection of bolus prevented by tongue (blocks oral cavity), soft palate (blocks nasal cavity), &
epiglottis (blocks trachea)

Don’t Try to Swallow & Talk at the Same Time

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 • Inhaling, talking, or laughing while swallowing prevents epiglottis from blocking entry into larynx 
triggers cough reflex

STOMACH

• Bolus from esophagus enters stomach when gastroesophageal sphincter opens

• Stomach functions:

– Food storage (capable of lots of stretch)

– Continues mechanical & chemical digestion (initiated in mouth)

STOMACH CAPACITY

• Stomach is capable of extensive stretching (up to 80x its empty volume!)

– Empty: 50 ml volume

– Average meal: 1–1.5L

– Max. capacity: 4L

• Why many people who’ve had stomach bypass surgery end up gaining back much of the weight they
initially lose

STOMACH WALL

• Outer layers (serosa) – smooth muscle

• Inner layer (mucosa) – lots of invaginations which increase SA for lots of gastric glands

GASTRIC GLANDS OF STOMACH

• Contain specialized cells w/ specific functions

• Mucous cells: secrete mucus that protects mucosa (inner lining)

• Chief cells (most abundant): secrete pepsinogen (inactive form of pepsin, a protease)

– Zymogen =any inactive form of an enzyme

• Enteroendocrine cells (e.g. G cells): secrete hormones regulating digestion

• Parietal cells: secrete hydrochloric acid (HCl) & Intrinsic factor
– Intrinsic factor: needed for vitamin B12 absorption (thus, Hb synthesis) in small intestine

Functions of HCl in Stomach Secretions

• Activates pepsinogen  pepsin
• Activates lingual lipase to begin some lipid digestion (about 10%)
• Destroys ingested bacteria and other pathogens

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• Helps liquify food by breaking up plant cell walls & animal connective tissue (along w/ mixing actions) 
chyme
• Converts ingested Fe+3  absorbable Fe+2 needed for Hb synthesis

GASTRIC MOTILITY
• Stomach movement
• Under hormonal & neutral control
As you begin to swallow, swallowing center in medulla oblongata signals stomach to relax as it prepares
to receive food  arriving bolus stretches stomach  brief contraction followed by relaxation of smooth
muscles to accommodate more food
• Stomach undergoes peristaltic contractions & churning actions which enhance mechanical &
chemical digestion of contents, turning contents into chyme
– This “gastric mixing” primarily occurs in the antrum of stomach
• Typical meal emptied from stomach (through opened pyloric sphincter) in 4 h (less if more liquids, more
if hi fat)

VOMITING
• Occurs when gastroesophageal sphincter relaxes while stomach & upper small intestine (duodenum)
contract spasmodically w/ help from strong abdominal & diaphragm contractions
• Regulated by brain (vomiting center of medulla)
• Causes: overstretching of stomach, bacterial toxins, intense pain, psychological stimuli, etc.

Gastric (Peptic=general name) Ulcers

• Gastritis (inflammation of stomach mucosa) can cause HCl & pepsin to “breach” gel-like, protective
mucous barrier & erode stomach wall
• Left untreated, can lead to organ perforation &
fatal bleeding
• Causes: bacterium
that destroys mucous &
epithelial lining,
smoking, aspirin,

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 NSAIDS (min. mucous
coat)

At this stage in the digestive journey….

• Chyme leaves stomach w/

– proteins broken down into smaller peptides via action of pepsin
– small proportion of fats (10%) broken down into monoglycerides & fatty acids via salivary lipase
– carbohydrates (starch f/ plant & glycogen f/ animal) broken down into disaccharide (maltose)
via continued action of salivary amylase

SMALL INTESTINE
• Divided into 3 sections
– Duodenum: (small ~ 10in) begins at pyloric sphincter (ends at duodenojejunal flexure); receives
stomach contents, pancreatic juices, & bile from liver
– Jejunum
– Ileum

– Histology: SI completes digestion of food, & most of all nutrient absorption occurs here

– Outer serosa contains smooth muscle layers

– Middle submucosa contains Brunner’s glands – secrete HCO3 rich mucus to help neutralize stomach
acids

– Inner mucosa (= intestinal mucosa) faces lumen

- Intestinal mucosa arranged in simple columnar epithelium

- Each villus contains different cells & structures
- Each villus made up of
– Simple columnar epithelium made up of absorptive cells (enterocytes) & goblet cells (secrete
mucus)
– Central lacteal
(lymph vessel)
– Capillaries
(blood supply)

THE ENTEROCYTE
• Intestinal mucosa also called “brush border” due to microvilli of ea. enterocyte
• Microvilli
– gives “brushy” appearance
– Invaginations of enterocyte
plasma membrane
– Lots of SA for enzymes
( brush border enzymes)

• Structure of intestinal mucosa allows for a 600x greater surface area than if a flat surface
– Intestinal folds 
3x increase in SA
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 – Villi  10X increase
in SA
– Microvilli 20x increase
Total 600x

 Digestion and Absorption of Vitamins

• Nucleic acids are digested into nitrogenous bases and monosaccharides
• Intestine absorbs vitamins and minerals
– Fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) absorbed with fats in small intestines
– Water-soluble vitamins (C, B vitamins) absorbed by mediated transport
 Exception: Vitamin B12 when complexed to intrinsic factor, secreted in the stomach, and
absorbed in ileum
 Minerals absorbed by active transport

 Absorption of Iron

• Iron absorption is affected by the form in which iron is presented to the digestive tract, and inorganic
iron ions change oxidation state during the absorption process.
• There are two major forms of dietary iron.
1. Heme iron - found primarily in red meats, is the most easily absorbed form.
2. Other forms of iron are bound to some other organic constituent of the food. Cooking
tends to break these interactions and increase iron availability.

• Iron ions undergo two important changes of oxidation state during digestion and absorption.

1. The first change occurs in the stomach.

- Here iron (III) is reduced to iron (II).

- This reduction is favored by the low pH. Reducing agents, such as ascorbic acid, assist this
process.

- Reduction is important because iron (II) dissociates from ligands more easily than iron (III).

2. The second change occurs in the duodenum.

- The duodenum is bicarbonate-rich, and alkaline.

- In the alkaline environment

- Heme is absorbed directly by the mucosal cells. Within the cells, the iron dissociates from it.

- free iron (II) ions are oxidized to iron (III), which is taken up by the mucosal cells in substantial amounts under
all circumstances of nutritional iron status

FORMATION OF FECES

• Normal feces are roughly 75% water and 25% solids.

• The bulk of fecal solids are bacteria and undigested organic matter and fiber.

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 • The characteristic brown color of feces are due to stercobilin and urobinin, both of which are
produced by bacterial degradation of bilirubin.

• Fecal odor results from gases produced by bacterial metabolism, including skatole, mercaptans, and
hydrogen sulfide.

DIETARY FIBERS

• Dietary fiber (also know as "roughage" or "bulk")

 the part of the food that is indigestible. Found only in plant foods, it moves largely unaltered through the
stomach and small intestine and into the colon.

• Types of Dietary Fiber:

1. Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water and travels through the small intestines quickly.

2. Soluble fiber breaks down as it passes through the digestive tract forming a gel that traps some
substances that are beneficial in lowering cholesterol, stabilizing blood sugar and affecting nutrient
absorption

MEDICAL CONDITIONS THAT AFFECT HOW CARBOHYDRATES ARE INGETED

 GALACTOSEMIA
 FRUCTOSE MELABSORPTION
 MUCOPOLYSACCHARIDOSES
 PYRUVATE METABOLISM DISORDERS

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