Topic 6.

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
Topic Outline AUDIO

 Digestive System

 Peristalsis vs Segmentation

 Chemical Digestion

 Examples of Digestion

 Small Intestine (Villi)

 Absorption Methods

 Modelling Digestive Processes

The structure of the wall of the small intestine allows it to move, digest and absorb food
Food Processing

Food is any substance that is consumed for nutrition Food Processing:

• Nutrients are used by to survive, grow and reproduce INGESTION

Food is typically solid and in the form of large, complex DIGESTION

molecules which are chemically inert (not readily usable)

ABSORPTION

Digestion of large food molecules is essential because: ASSIMILATION

• Small molecules are easier to absorb (more soluble)
• Small molecules can be reassembled (new products) ELIMINATION
Components of the Digestive System

The human digestive system is comprised of two major groups of organs:

Alimentary Canal
• Consists of the organs through which the food physically passes
• Includes the oesophagus, stomach, small intestine and large intestine

Accessory Organs
• Consists of organs that aid in digestion but do not actually transfer food
• Includes the salivary glands, pancreas, liver and gall bladder
Diagram of the Digestive System

Salivary Glands Oesophagus

Moistens food into bolus Transports food to stomach

Liver Stomach
Detoxification / bile synthesis Stores & churns food

Gall Bladder Pancreas

Bile storage & release Releases enzymes & hormones

Small Intestine Large Intestine

Absorbs nutrients Absorbs water & ions

Production of an annotated diagram of the digestive system

Alimentary Canal

Oesophagus: Tube connecting oral cavity to stomach

• Food is mixed (with saliva) into a bolus and moved via peristalsis

Stomach: Temporary storage tank

• Releases digestive juices and maintains a highly acidic environment

Small Intestine: Absorbs usable food substances (nutrients)

• Consists of three sections – the duodenum, jejunum and ileum

Large Intestine: Absorbs water and dissolved minerals

• Converts undigested material into a semi-solid faeces for excretion
Accessory Organs

Salivary Glands: Releases saliva to moisten food

• Includes parotid gland, submandibular gland and sublingual gland

Pancreas: Produces digestive enzymes and hormones

• Enzymes are released into the small intestine via the duodenum

Liver: Converts absorbed materials into usable chemicals

• Roles include detoxification, metabolism, storage and bile production

Gall Bladder: Stores and releases bile (produced by liver)

• Bile salts are released via the bile duct and are used to emulsify fats
Digestive Movement

Digested food is moved through the alimentary canal by two key mechanisms:

Peristalsis Segmentation
• Involves longitudinal muscles • Involves circular muscles
• Food moves distally along canal • Food moves back and forth (mixes)

Contraction of smooth muscle of the small intestine mixes food with enzymes & moves it along the gut
Process of Digestion

Digestion can involve either the physical or chemical breakdown of food:

Mechanical Digestion
• Food is physically broken down into smaller fragments
• Achieved via chewing (mouth), churning (stomach) or segmentation (intestines)

Chemical Digestion
• Food is broken down via the action of chemical agents
• Chemical agents include saliva, stomach acids, bile and pancreatic juices
Digestive Enzymes

Enzymes allow digestion to occur at body temperatures and at sufficient speeds

• As enzymes are specific, particular molecules can be digested independently
• Enzymes are secreted by specific organs to allow for digestion to be targeted

AMYLASE LIPASES (+ BILE) PEPTIDASES NUCLEASES

Carbohydrate Lipid (tryglyceride) Protein Nucleic Acid

Fatty Mono-
Monosaccharides acids + glycerides Amino acids Nucleotides

Enzymes digest most macromolecules in food into monomers in the small intestine
Enzymatic Secretion
Liver
Digestive enzymes are mainly secreted by
the pancreas, but other organs contribute
• Salivary glands secrete amylase
Stomach
• The stomach secretes proteases

Enzymes produced by the pancreas are

secreted into the small intestine lumen
• The pancreas also secretes hormones Pancreas
Small Intestine

The pancreas secretes enzymes into the lumen of the small intestine
Types of Digestion: Carbohydrates

Starch is the main polysaccharide in human diets Polysaccharide Starch

• Amylose: Glucose monomers in linear chains Amylase (pancreas)
• Amylopectin: Monomers in branched chains
Disaccharide Maltose

Starch is digested by amylase into small subunits Maltase (intestines)

• Maltose (amylose) or dextrin (amylopectin) Monosaccharide Glucose

Glycogenesis (liver)
Glucose monomers are used for cell respiration
Polysaccharide Glycogen
or processed and stored in the liver (as glycogen)

Processes occurring in small intestine result in digestion of starch and transport of products to liver
Types of Digestion: Proteins

Proteases are secreted in the form of inactive precursors (called zymogens)

• This prevents the proteases from digesting the cells that synthesized them

Proteases may be activated by specific enzymes or chemical agents (e.g. low pH)
• Protein digestion begins in the stomach and continues in the small intestine

Protease Site of Synthesis Precursor Activation Method Site of Use

Pepsin Stomach (chief cells) Pepsinogen Hydrochloric Acid Stomach

Trypsin Pancreas (acinar cells) Trypsinogen Enterokinase Intestine

Types of Digestion: Lipids

Lipids are insoluble in water and need to be complexed globules

DIGEST
with proteins in order to be transported in the blood

• Lipid globules are emulsified by bile salts before

being chemically digested by pancreatic lipases chylomicron

ABSORB
• Components are combined with protein to form
chylomicrons which are transported to the liver

LACTEAL
• Liver converts chylomicrons into soluble lipoproteins
Absorption

Once food material has been broken down via digestion, it must be absorbed into
the bloodstream and then transported to cells (via the liver) for assimilation
• The liver stores and metabolizes nutrients to regulate chemical composition

Nutrients (i.e. food subunits) are primarily absorbed within the small intestine,
while water and dissolved minerals (ions) are absorbed within the large intestine

Absorption: Movement of a fluid (or dissolved substance) across a membrane

Assimilation: Conversion of nutrients into a fluid or solid part of an organism

Small Intestine

The small intestine is comprised of four layers:

• Serosa: A protective outer covering

• Muscle layer: For digestive movement

o Outer = longitudinal (peristalsis)
o Inner = circular (segmentation)

• Submucosa: A connective tissue layer

• Mucosa: Inner layer for absorption Transverse (click for longitudinal)

Identification of tissue layers in transverse sections of the small intestine viewed with a microscope
Structure of Villi

The epithelial lining of the intestine is folded into

finger-like projections called villi (singular: villus)

They significantly increase the available surface

area and hence optimize the rate of absorption

Epithelial cells are connected by tight junctions

• Creates an impermeable barrier between the
body tissues and digestive juices in the lumen

Villi absorb monomers formed by digestion as well as mineral ions and vitamins
Feature of Villi

Key features of intestinal villi include:

• Microvilli (increases the surface area : volume ratio)
• Rich capillary network (transports digested products)
• Single-layer epithelium (minimises diffusion distance)
• Lacteals (absorbs lipids into the lymphatic system)
• Intestinal glands (exocrine pits release enzymes)
• Membrane proteins (facilitates transport of products)

Mnemonic: MR SLIM
Villi increase the surface area of epithelium over which absorption is carried out
Absorption: Membrane Transport

Different nutrients are absorbed by a variety of distinct transport mechanisms:

Secondary Active Transport:

• Glucose and amino acids are co-transported with sodium ions (actively pumped)

Facilitated Diffusion:
• Monosaccharides, vitamins and minerals are transported by channel proteins

Simple Diffusion:
• Hydrophobic and lipophilic substances (fats) may freely cross the membrane

Different methods of membrane transport are required to absorb different nutrients

Absorption: Bulk Transport

Digested materials can also be ingested en masse via bulk transport (pinocytosis)
• Vesicles form around fluid containing dissolved materials (i.e. cell ‘drinking’)
• Pinocytosis takes less time than shuttling materials via membrane proteins

Different methods of membrane transport are required to absorb different nutrients

Modeling Absorption

Absorption needs large food substances to be

rises falls
broken down (by enzymes) into small subunits

The size-specific permeability of the intestinal

membrane can be modeled via dialysis tubing

The tubing is impermeable to polysaccharides

Control Experiment
(starch), but is permeable to maltose subunits Starch in tube Digest starch
• Digestion can be measured via osmosis Water enters Maltose exits

Use of dialysis tubing to model absorption of digested foods in the intestine

Topic Review

Can you do the following?

• Identify components of the digestive system

• Compare types of digestive movement
• Compare physical vs chemical breakdown
• Explain the role of the pancreas
• Describe the breakdown of types of food
• Outline the structure of intestinal villi
• Discuss methods of material absorption