Finals Lesson 1: Digestive System

MLS 407: Human Histology [lecture/laboratory- BSMLS 2

Dr. Vicheryl Lopez
OUTLINE  consists of connective tissue and
I. Digestive System (Major Organs) interlacing bundles of skeletal muscle
II. General structure of the digestive tract fibers
III. Digestive System (Accessory Organs)  Sulcus terminalis-V-shaped
depression that divides the dorsal
surface of the tongue into an anterior
two-thirds and a posterior one-third
 Posterior portion-has lingual tonsils
 Anterior portion-has numerous lingual papillae called
filiform, fungiform, foliate and circumvallate papillae.
 PAPILLAE - covered by stratified squamous epithelium that
shows partial or incomplete keratinization
 VENTRAL surface – nonkeratinized

Filiform Papillae
 narrow, conical, or pointed
 most numerous and smallest papillae on the surface of the
Major Organs tongue
Oral cavity  cover the entire anterior dorsal surface of the tongue
Lip  provide a rough surface (heavily keratinized) that facilitates
 Formed impart by the movement of food during chewing
lips  do not contain taste buds
 External surface of the
lip- stratified squamous
keratinized epithelium
 Internal or oral surface
of the lip-stratified
squamous
nonkeratinized oral
epithelium
 blood vessels close to the surface imparting a red color to
the lips
 contains hairs, sebaceous and sweat glands and mucus-
secreting labial glands (moisten the oral mucosa)
 also contains skeletal muscle called orbicularis oris

Fungiform Papillae
Tongue  ▹ larger, broader, and taller than the filiform papillae

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

  exhibit a mushroom-like shape, project above the filiform
papillae
 less numerous, lightly keratinized
 prevalent in the anterior region and tip of the tongue
 contain taste buds

Foliate Papillae
 consist of several parallel ridges on each side of the tongue
 well developed in some animals but are rudimentary or
poorly developed in humans
 contain taste buds

Circumvallate Papillae
 Largest papillae
 8 to 12 circumvallate papillae are located in the posterior
region of the tongue in humans
 characterized by deep moats or furrows that encircle them
 underlying serous glands (von Ebner) empty serous
secretions into the base of furrows
 numerous taste buds are located in the on the lateral sides
of each papilla
Taste Buds
 located in foliate, fungiform, and circumvallate papillae;
pharynx; palate; and epiglottis
 exhibit tastes pores and occupy thickness of epithelium;
microvilli protrude through taste pore
 contains three main cell types:
o Neuroepithelial cells synapse with afferent axons
and are the receptors for taste
o Supportive sustentacular cells
o Basal cells/stem cells
 five basic taste sensations are sour, salt, bitter, sweet, and
umami

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

2
 General structure of the Digestive Tract
Mucosa
 epithelial lining
 lamina propria
o loose connective tissue
 muscularis mucosae
o thin layer of smooth muscle
Submucosa
 dense irregular connective tissue
 submucosal (Meissner) plexus
Muscularis Externa
 ▹thick, smooth muscle layer
 contains an inner layer of circular smooth muscle and an
outer layer of longitudinal smooth muscle (except for the
large intestine)
 myenteric (Auerbach) nerve plexus
Serosa
 thin sheet of loose connective tissue, covered with
mesothelium
 outermost layer of the digestive tract located within the
abdominal cavity
 adventitia if there is no mesothelium

Esophagus
 to convey liquids or chewed food (bolus) from the oral
cavity to the stomach
Mucosa
 Epithelium
o nonkeratinized stratified squamous epithelium
 Lamina propria
o esophageal cardiac glands (near the stomach),
secrete mucus
Submucosa
 contains small mucus-secreting glands, the esophageal
glands proper, which lubricate, protect the mucosa
facilitates smooth passage of food material (bolus)
Muscularis Externa
 Upper 3rd: Skeletal Muscle
 Middle 3rd: Skeletal & Smooth Muscles
 Lower 3rd: Smooth Muscle
Serosa/Adventitia
 only the distal 1-2 cm of the esophagus, in the peritoneal
cavity, is covered by serosa; the rest is enclosed by
adventitia

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

3
 Note: In the cardia and pylorus regions of the stomach, the glands lack
Stomach both parietal and chief cells, primarily secreting abundant mucus.
 receives, stores, mixes, digests, and absorbs some of the
ingested product
4 Major Regions
1. Cardia- narrow
transitional zone, 1.5-
3 cm wide, between
the esophagus and
the stomach
2. Pylorus- funnel-
shaped region that
opens into the small
intestine (Both these
regions are primarily Mucosa
involved with mucus  lamina propria- surrounds and supports the gastric pits and
production and are glands
histologically similar)  muscularis mucosae- inner circular and an outer
3. Fundus longitudinal layer
4. Body or Corpus *Both Submucosa
are identical in
 The mucosa and submucosa of the empty stomach have
microscopic structure and are the sites of gastric gland
large, longitudinally directed folds called RUGAE, which
releasing acidic gastric juice
flatten when the stomach fills with food.
Mucosa
Muscularis Externa
Epithelium
 Simple columnar/surface  three poorly defined layers of smooth muscle: an outer
mucous longitudinal layer, a middle circular layer, and an innermost
epithelium/foveolar oblique layer
epithelium Serosa
 Gastric pits- formed by
invaginations of the
surface epithelium
 Gastric glands-open into
the base of gastric pits
o Gastric glands
proper-
principal glands
found in the
fundus/body-produce gastric juice
o Pyloric glands- mucus secreting
o Cardiac glands- located only within the cardiac
Gastric Gland cells

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

4
  Villi
o permanent finger-like
projections of lamina
propria of the mucosa
that extend into the
intestinal lumen
o covered by a simple
columnar epithelium of
absorptive cells called
enterocytes, with many
interspersed goblet cells
 Microvilli
o cytoplasmic
extensions that cover the
apices of the
intestinal absorptive
cells
o brush border
Intestinal Glands and cells
 intestinal glands (crypts of Lieberkühn )
 Absorptive cells (Enterocytes)
o most common cells in the intestinal epithelium
o tall and columnar with a prominent brush border
of microvilli
 Goblet cells
o secrete mucus to protect and lubricate the lining
 Paneth cells
o located at the base of intestinal glands
o secretes lysozyme and defensins thus provide host
defense against microbes
 Enteroendocrine cells
o secrete numerous regulatory hormones for the
digestive system

Small Intestine
 digestion of gastric
contents and absorption of
nutrients
 longest section of the
digestive tract
 consists of three segments:
o duodenum
o jejunum
o ileum

Surface modification of small intestine for absorption

 PLICAE CIRCULARES
o series of
permanent
circular or
semilunar folds
consisting of
mucosa and
submucosa
o best developed
in the jejunum
where most
absorption
takes place

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

5
 Regional Differences in small intestine
Ileum
Duodenum
 contains villi that are narrow
 shortest segment of the
and short
small intestine
 epithelium containing more
 villi are broad, tall, and
goblet cells
numerous, with fewer
 increased numbers of
goblet cells in the
lymphocytes in the lamina
epithelium
propria
 Characteristic feature of
 aggregated lymphatic nodules
the duodenum
(Peyer patches) in the lamina
o branched
propria and submucosa
duodenal
(Brunner) glands with mucus-secreting

Large Intestine
 absorption of water
Jejunum and electrolytes
 consists of:
 longer than the
o cecum
duodenum
o ascending
 contains the largest
o transverse
surface area for the
absorption of the o descending
digested material o sigmoid
 villi are tall and lined with colon
simple columnar o rectum
epithelium o anus
 more goblet cells in the
epithelium Mucosa
 simple columnar epithelium

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

6
  crypts of Lieberkühn are deeper
 goblet cells more abundant
 absence of villi, plicae circularis
 Lamina propria
 Muscularis mucosae
Submucosa
Muscularis Externa
 inner circular muscle layer
 outer muscle layer is condensed into three broad,
longitudinal bands called taeniae coli
Serosa
 transverse and sigmoid colon Rectoanal Junction
 Adventitia  simple columnar mucosal lining of the rectum is replaced by
o ascending and descending colon stratified squamous epithelium
 In the upper region of the anal canal, the inner circular
muscle layer thickens to form the internal anal sphincter
 Distally, smooth muscle is replaced by skeletal muscle that
forms the external anal sphincter

Appendix
 6-7 cm long structure
attached to the cecum
 Intestinal glands -less well
developed, shorter, and
often spaced farther apart
than those in the colon
 Lymphatic nodules with
germinal centers are
numerous - highly
characteristic of the
appendix
ACCESSORY DIGESTIVE ORGANS
Liver
 production of bile

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

7
 organized into repeating liver (hepatic) lobules, with central
vein in the center of lobule
 plates of liver cells (hepatocytes) radiate to lobule periphery
from central vein
 portal vein, hepatic artery, and bile duct in lobule periphery
are portal areas/portal triad
 Hepatic sinusoids
o lined with discontinuous and fenestrated
endothelium
o separated from the underlying hepatocytes by a
subendothelial perisinusoidal spaces (spaces of
Disse)
o Kupffer cells -phagocytes
o Hepatic stellate (Ito) cells - store vitamin A and
other fat-soluble vitamins

Gallbladder
 store and concentrate bile
 consists of a mucosa
composed of simple
columnar epithelium and
lamina propria, muscularis
with bundles of muscle
fibers and an external
adventitia or serosa
 nondistended state-shows
temporary mucosal folds
 does not contain a
muscularis mucosae or
submucosa

Trans by: heyhey and Mayari

8