HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION

HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
The process of reducing food into
smaller molecules that can be
absorbed into the body
 Digestive system
Major organs consistsAcessory
of 2 major
organs:
 parts
Mouth  Liver

 Esophagus  Gall

 Stomach bladder
 Pancreas.
 small
intestine
 large
intestine.
 MAJOR ORGANS
THE MOUTH
 The first part of the digestive system
 the entry point of food.

 Structures in the mouth that aids digestion

Teeth :cut, tear, crush and grind food.

Salivary glands – produce and secrete saliva into the

oral cavity.

saliva
-Provides an alkaline medium.
- Lubricants and moistens food
-contains enzymes (ptyalin or salivary amylase) begins the
digestion process and breaks down carbohydrates into simple sugars .

Function:
 Mechanical digestion.
The Esophagus
 a tube connecting the mouth to the stomach
 running through the Thoracic cavity.

 Location:

 lies behind windpipe (Trachea).

o The trachea has as an epiglottis:

-preventing food from entering the windpipe,

-moving the food to the esophagus while
swallowing.
 Food travels down the
esophagus, through
a series of
involuntary rhythmic
contractions (wave-
like) called
peristalsis.

 Function:
• The lining of the
esophagus
secretes mucus
• Lubricating to
support the
movement of food.
 ESOPHAGEAL SPHINCTER:
• a high-pressure
zone located
where the
esophagus
meets the
stomach

• Function:
• prevent stomach
acids from back
flowing into the
esophagus.
STOMACH
 J-shaped muscular sac
 Has inner folds (rugae) Increasing surface

area of the stomach.

 Function:
 Stomach performs mechanical digestion
 HOW
By churning the bolus and mixing it with the
gastric juices
secreted by the lining of the stomach.
 GASTRIC JUICES
HCl, salts, enzymes, water and mucus)
 HCL helps break down of food and kills bacteria
that came along with the food.
ENZYMES IN STOMACH:

 Acidic environment
 HCl secreation
 kill any microbes that are found in the bolus,
 creating a pH
 Mucus prevents the stomach from digesting itself.
 Pepsin secreation
 responsible for initiating the breakdown of proteins
in food.
 hydrolyzes proteins to yield polypeptides.
 Pyloric sphincter:
 is a muscular valve
that opens to allow
food to pass from
the stomach to the
top of the small
intestine
 SMALL INTESTINE
 responsible for the complete digestion of all
macromolecules
 and the absorption of their component

molecules E.g
 glucose

 Glycerol

 fatty acids

 amino acids

 nucleotides
PARTS OF SMALL
INTESTINE

 The small intestine is made up of three

parts
 duodenum

 Jejunum

 ileum
1.DUODENUM
 The first part is the duodenum, u-shaped
organ.
 approximately 30 cm in length.

 This area completes most of the

digestion processes.
 Enzymes are secreted into the duodenum

form the pancreas and the gall bladder. The

duodenum is lined by folds of tissue called
villi.
 The villi are covered by fine brush-like

microvilli.
 These folds increase the surface area of the

small intestine increase the rate of

2.JEJUNUM
 The jejunum is approximately 2.5 m long.
 Although some digestion is completed here,
it has more villi and microvilli; its role is
absorption of nutrients.

3.Ileum
o The ileum, is approximately 3m long.
o has fewer villi and microvilli than the
other two parts.
o Although absorption also occurs here, it is
responsible for pushing the waste materials
into the large intestine.
FUNCTIONS OF THE SMALL INTESTINE

 90% of the digestion and absorption of food

occurs
 other 10% taking place in the stomach

and large intestine.

 The main function of the small intestine

is absorption of nutrients and minerals

from food.

Digestion of proteins
 Proteins, peptides and amino acids are

acted upon by enzymes such as trypsin and

chymotrypsin, secreted by the pancreas.
This breaks them down to smaller peptides.
DIGESTION OF LIPIDS

 Enzymes, like lipases secreted from the

pancreas, act
on fats and lipids in diet.
 lipase can break them into the smaller parts
that can enter the intestinal villi for
absorption.

Digestion of carbohydrates
 Carbohydrates are broken down to simple
sugars and monosaccharides like glucose.
 Pancreatic amylase breaks down some

carbohydrates
to oligosaccharides as well.
 Some carbohydrates and fibers pass undigested
to the large intestine where they may,
ABSORPTION IN THE SMALL INTESTINES

 the nutrients are absorbed by the inner

walls of the
small intestine into the blood stream.
 The nutrients are absorbed by
processes of simple/passive
diffusion, facilitated
diffusion, primary active transport, or
secondary active transport.
ABSORPTION IN THE SMALL INTESTINES

 Other absorbed substances in the small

intestines
include:
1.Water
 80% is absorbed by the small intestine

 10% by the large intestine

 remaining 10% excreted in the faeces.

2.Electrolytes
3.Vitamins and minerals
LARGE INTESTINE
(parts & function )
COMPONENTS OF LARGE INTESTINE
 The large intestine is composed of several very
distinctive
parts:
 Cecum:
 Colon:. The colon consists of four parts:
 Ascending colon
 Transverse colon
 Descending colon
 Sigmoid colon
 Rectum
CECUM
 first section of large intestine
 looks like a pouch,
 two inches long.
 ROLE
 taking in digested liquid
from the ileum(small
intestine) & passes it on to
the colon.
COLON :
 major section of the large intestine
 Function:
 the principal place for water
reabsorption,
 absorbs salts when needed.
 Components :
 The colon consists of 4 parts:
 Ascending colon
 Transverse colon
 Descending colon
 Sigmoid colon
COMPONENTS OF COLON
 Ascending colon:
 1st portion of the colon
 pushes any undigested debris up
from the cecum
 Transverse colon:
 2nd portion of the colon
 Food traveling from left to right
just under
stomach.
COMPONENTS OF COLON
 Descending colon:
 3rd portion of colon
 pushes its contents from
down to the lower left
side of your abdomen

 Sigmoid colon:
 Final S-shaped length of
the colon, empties into
the rectum.
RECTUM
 The final section
 measures from 1 to 1.6 inches (or 2.5 to
4 cm).
 Leftover waste collects there
 expanding the rectum
 emptied through anus
FUNCTION OF LARGE INTESTINE
 1. Absorb Water
 One of the primary functions is to absorb water
 prepare the waste as a solid stool that will be
expelled from the body.
 2. Absorb Vitamin
 beneficial bacteria
 role in breaking down undigested sugars and fibers
into fatty acids.
 produce many vitamins, of which are Vitamin K and
Biotin that
are absorbed back into the body.
FUNCTION OF LARGE INTESTINE(LI)
 3. Reduce Acidity
The fatty acids cause acidic environment.
The LI produces alkaline solutions
reduce the acidity and balance the pH in the LI

 4.Protect from Infections

The mucous lining of the large intestine acts as a
protective layer
prevents harmful bacteria from being reabsorbed
into the
body.
THE ACCESSORY ORGANS:
 support the digestive system BUT are not part of the
digestive
tract
 These organs secrete fluids into the digestive
tract, and are connect by ducts.
 The accessory organs include
 liver
 gall bladder
 pancreas.
1.LIVER
 largest of these organs
 mass of about 1.5 kg.
 liver produces bile
 bile
greenish yellow
pigment made up bile
pigments and bile salts
 Roles:
• Regulates sugar/glucose
• Breaks down excess RBC
• Storage of blood
• Detoxification
• Generation of heat
2.GALL BLADDER
 a storage sac.
 stores and concentrates
bile from the liver
 HOW IT WORKS
 the bile is released into
the first section of the
small intestine (the
duodenum), where it
helps your body to break
down and absorb fats
from food.
3.PANCREAS
 The pancreas secretes a number of different enzymes into the
small intestine]
 It is also an exocrine gland because it secretes
pancreatic juice in the duodenum
- pancreatic juice contains lipase, trypsin and
pancreatic amylase for digestion of lipids,
proteins and starch

 It also secretes bicarbonate ions

 Role :
neutralize the HCl from the stomach change the pH of the
small intestine to a pH of 8.

 The pancreas will secrete about 1.0 L. of pancreatic fluids per

day.