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Digestive System

The digestive system consists of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and accessory digestive organs, with the GI tract being a continuous tube from the mouth to the anus. It performs six basic processes: ingestion, secretion, mixing and propulsion, digestion, absorption, and defecation, facilitated by various layers including the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and serosa/adventitia. Each layer has specific functions, such as secretion of digestive enzymes, absorption of nutrients, and propulsion of food through the tract.

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19 views6 pages

Digestive System

The digestive system consists of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and accessory digestive organs, with the GI tract being a continuous tube from the mouth to the anus. It performs six basic processes: ingestion, secretion, mixing and propulsion, digestion, absorption, and defecation, facilitated by various layers including the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and serosa/adventitia. Each layer has specific functions, such as secretion of digestive enzymes, absorption of nutrients, and propulsion of food through the tract.

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franchesca.sahibul
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DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Two groups of organs compose the digestive system :


the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and the accessory digestive organs.
The gastrointestinal (GI) tract, or alimentary canal (alimentary
nourishment), is a continuous tube that extends from the mouth to the anus
through the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavities.
Organs of the gastrointestinal tract include the:
mouth, most of thepharynx, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large
intestine.
The length of the GI tract is about 5–7 meters (16.5–23 ft) in a living person
when the muscles along the wall of the GI tract organs are in a state of tonus
(sustained contraction).
It is longer in a cadaver(about 7–9 meters or 23–29.5 ft) because of the loss of
muscle
tone after death.
alimentary canal is approximately 9 m (about 30 ft) long,
The accessory digestive organs include the:
teeth, tongue, salivary glands, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas.
Teeth aid in the physical breakdown of food, and the tongue assists
in chewing and swallowing.
The other accessory digestive organs,however, never come into direct contact
with food. They produceor store secretions that flow into the GI tract through
ducts; the secretions
aid in the chemical breakdown of food.
The GI tract contains food from the time it is eaten until it is digested and
absorbed or eliminated. Muscular contractions in the wall of the GI tract
physically break down the food by churning it
and propel the food along the tract, from the esophagus to the anus. The
contractions also help to dissolve foods by mixing them with fluids secreted
into the tract. Enzymes secreted by accessory digestive organs and cells that
line the tract break down the food chemically.
Overall, the digestive system performs six basic processes:
1. Ingestion.
This process involves taking foods and liquids int the mouth (eating).
2. Secretion.
Each day, cells within the walls of the GI tract and accessory digestive organs
secrete a total of about 7 liters of water, acid, buffers, and enzymes into the
lumen (interior
space) of the tract.
3. Mixing and propulsion. Alternating contractions and relaxations of smooth
muscle in the walls of the GI tract mix food and secretions and propel them
toward the anus. This capability of the GI tract to mix and move material along
its length is called motility (mo¯-TIL-i-te¯).
4. Digestion.
Mechanical and chemical processes break down ingested food into small
molecules. In mechanical digestion the teeth cut and grind food before it is
swallowed, and then smooth muscles of the stomach and small intestine churn
the food. As a result, food molecules become dissolved and thoroughly mixed
with digestive enzymes. In chemical digestion the large carbohydrate, lipid,
protein, and nucleic acid molecules in food are split into smaller molecules by
hydrolysis
5. Defecation.
Wastes, indigestible substances, bacteria, cells sloughed from the lining of the
GI tract, and digested materials that were not absorbed in their journey
through the digestive tract leave the body through the anus in a process called
defecation (def-e-KA¯-shun). The eliminated material is
termed feces (FE¯ -se¯z) or stool.Digestive enzymes produced by the salivary
glands, tongue, stomach, pancreas, and small intestine catalyze these
catabolic reactions. A few substances in food can be absorbed without
chemical digestion. These include vitamins, ions, cholesterol, and water.
6. Absorption.
The entrance of ingested and secreted fluids, ions, and the products of
digestion into the epithelial cells lining the lumen of the GI tract is called
absorption (ab-SO¯ RP-shun).

FUNCTIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM


1. INGESTION: taking food into mouth.
2. SECRETION: release of water, acid, buffers, and enzymes into lumen of GI
tract.
3. MIXING AND PROPULSION: churning and propulsion of food through GI
tract.
4. DIGESTION: mechanical and chemical breakdown of food.
5. ABSORPTION: passage of digested products from GI tract into blood and
lymph.
6. DEFECATION: elimination of feces from GI tract.

LAYERS OF THE GI TRACT


Describe the structure and function of the layers that form the wall of the
gastrointestinal tract;
 The wall of the GI tract from the lower esophagus to the anal canal has the
same basic, four-layered arrangement of tissues.
The four layers of the tract, from deep to superficial, are the mucosa,
submucosa, muscularis, and serosa/adventitia

1) MUCOSA
The mucosa, or inner lining of the GI tract, is a mucous membrane. It is
composed of :
 a layer of epithelium in direct contact with the contents of the GI tract
 a layer of connective tissue called the lamina propria, and
 a thin layer of smooth muscle (muscularis mucosae
Its major functions are to:
 Secrete mucus, digestive enzymes, and hormones
 Absorb the end products of digestion into the blood
 Protect against infectious disease
A. epithelium
 in the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, and anal canal is mainly nonkeratinized
stratified squamous epithelium that serves a protective function.
 The rate of renewal of GI tract epithelial cells is rapid: Every 5 to 7 days
they slough off and are replaced by new cells.
 Located among the epithelial cells are exocrine cells that secrete mucus
and fluid into the lumen of the tract, and several types of endocrine cells,
collectively called enteroendocrine cells , which secrete hormones.
In the stomach and small intestine, the mucosa also contains both enzyme-synthesizing
and hormone-secreting cells. In such sites, the mucosa is a diffuse kind of endocrine organ
as well as part of the digestive organ
B. lamina propria (lamina thin, flat plate; propria one’s own)
 is areolar connective tissue containing many blood and lymphatic vessels,
which are the routes by which nutrients absorbed into the GI tract reach the
other tissues of the body.
 This layer supports the epithelium and binds it to the muscularis mucosae
 appendix, and large intestine. Its capillaries nourish the epithelium and
absorb digested nutrients.
 Its isolated lymphoid follicles, part of MALT (the mucosa-associated
lymphoid tissue) help defend us against bacteria and other
pathogens,These prominent lymphatic nodules contain immune system
cells that protect against disease
 MALT is present all along the GI tract, especially in the tonsils, small
intestine,
C. muscularis mucosae
 External to the lamina propria
 A thin layer of smooth muscle fibers
 throws the mucous membrane of the stomach and small intestine into
many small folds, which increase the surface area for digestion and
absorption.
 Movements of the muscularis mucosae ensure that all absorptive cells are
fully exposed to the contents of the GI tract.

2) SUBMUCOSA
 consists of alveolar connective tissue that binds the mucosa to the
muscularis.
 It contains many blood and lymphatic vessels that receive absorbed food
molecules.
 located in the submucosa is an extensive network of neurons known as the
submucosal plexus
 also contain glands and lymphatic tissue.
3)MUSCULARIS
 The muscularis of the mouth, pharynx, and superior and middle parts of the
esophagus contains skeletal muscle that produces voluntary swallowing.
 Skeletal muscle also forms the external anal sphincter, which permits
voluntary control of defecation.
 Throughout the rest of the tract, the muscularis consists of smooth muscle
that is generally found in two sheets: an inner sheet of circular fibers and
an outer sheet of longitudinal fibers.
 Involuntary contractions of the smooth muscle help break down food, mix
itwith digestive secretions, and propel it along the tract.
3) SEROSA
 The serosa, the outermost layer of the intraperitoneal organs, is the
visceral peritoneum. In most alimentary canal organs, it is formed of
areolar connective tissue covered with mesothelium, a single layer of
squamous epithelial cells
 In the esophagus, which is located in the thoracic instead of the
abdominopelvic cavity, the serosa is replaced by an adventitia ordinary
fibrous connective tissue that binds the esophagus to surrounding
structures.
 The serosa is also called the visceral peritoneum because it forms a
portion of the peritoneum, which we examine in detail shortly.
 The esophagus lacks a serosa; instead only a single layer of areolar
connective tissue called the adventitia forms
the superficial layer of this organ.

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