BIOLOGICAL

SYSTEMS
The Digestive System
 THE
ORGANIZATIO
N
OF
THE
HUMAN
BODY
ORGAN
SYSTEMS
SYSTEMS OF THE HUMAN
BODY
1. Digestive
2. Respiratory
3. Circulatory
WHAT IS THE DIGESTIVE
SYSTEM?
 a muscular tube that starts at the mouth
and ends at the anus
 also called:
- gastrointestinal tract
- alimentary canal
 performs 4 important functions
FUNCTIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE
SYSTEM – STAGES OF FOOD
PROCESSING
Ingestion
- taking in food
Digestion
- breakdown of food (mechanically and
chemically)
Absorption
– transport of products from digestive
system into circulatory system into the
body
Elimination
– removal of undigested waste from the
DIGESTION
 the food you eat is in a form that is
unsuitable for use by the body cells
 prepares the food for absorption by the
body
 food must be transformed into smaller
and simpler units that can pass through
the wall of the small intestine
MACRONUTRIENTS
 very large molecule that are made up of
smaller molecules that are linked
together
 Provide our bodies with needed energy
to perform life functions
Four Main Categories:
1. Carbohydrates
2. Lipids
3. Proteins  Essential
Nutrients
4. Nucleic Acids
CARBOHYDRATES
 macromolecules that always have
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
 short and long term energy storage
 2 Types:

1. Monosaccharides – simple sugars

2. Polysaccharides – many linked simple
sugars
LIPIDS
 does not dissolve in water
 Made up of:
- a glycerol (alcohol) made of 3 carbon
atoms attached to
- a fatty acid chain (acid with long tail of
carbon atoms)
 functions are energy storage
PROTEINS
 made from amino acid subunits joined
by peptide bonds
 help build and repair muscles and cell
membrane
 provide structure and support
NUCLEIC ACID
 Two Types:
1. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)
2. RNA (ribonucleic acid)
 directs the growth and development of
all organism using a chemical code
SUMMARY
 carbohydrates – monosaccharides
 fats and oils – fatty acids and glycerol
 proteins – amino acids
 nucleic acids – nucleotides
BREAKING DOWN
MACROMOLECULES
 Hydrolysis
- a chemical reaction in which water
breaks apart molecules into smaller
molecules
- water breaks up the chemical bonds
- breakdown involves special class of
proteins called enzymes
WHAT IS AN ENZYME?
 a protein molecule that helps speed up
chemical reactions in the body without
being used up in the body
 catalysts
TYPES OF DIGESTIVE
ENZYMES
 Carbohydrases – break down
carbohydrates
 Lipases – break down lipids
 Proteases – break down proteins
 Nucleases – break down nucleic acids
WHAT FACTORS AFFECT
ENZYME ACTION?
 temperature
 pH
MINERALS AND VITAMINS
 enable chemical reactions to occur
 helps with tissue development, growth,
and immunity
WATER
 makes up 2/3rds of the body’s mass
 transports dissolved nutrients
 flushes toxins from cells
 lubricates tissues/joints
 forms essential body fluids
 regulates body temperature
 eliminates waste
HUMAN DIGESTIVE
SYSTEM
WHAT ARE THE PARTS OF
THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM?
 Mouth
 Pharynx
 Esophagus
 Stomach
 Small Intestine
 Large Intestine
 Anus

** Each is specialized for a certain part in

the digestive system **
ACCESSORY ORGANS
 Salivary Glands
 Pancreas
 Liver
 Gall Bladder
WALL STRUCTURE OF THE
DIGESTIVE TRACT
 several layers
(from inside to outside)
- mucosa
- submucosa
- circular layers of smooth muscle
- longitudinal layers of smooth muscles
- serosa
MUCOSA
 epithelial lining
 Contains many cells:
- mucus secreting cells
- enzyme secreting cells
- absorptive cells
- hormone secreting cells
SUBMUCOSA
 Layer of connective tissue that supports:
- blood vessels
- lymphatic vessels
- nerves
CIRCULAR SMOOTH
MUSCLES
 forms rings around tube
 contraction constricts inside of the tube
LONGITUDINAL SMOOTH
MUSCLES
 arranged along the length of the
digestive tract
 contractions shortens a length of the
tract
SEROSA
 made of connective tissue
 forms covering of the digestive tract
 separates digestive tract from the rest
of the abdominal organs
TWO TYPES OF
DIGESTION
1. Mechanical
- occurs in the mouth (chewing)
- occurs in the stomach (movement/
churning of the stomach)
- Solid food is:
• shredded
• torn
• ground
• shaken
2. Chemical
- occurs throughout the digestive system
 ORGANS OF THE
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
ORAL CAVITY
mouth begins to
dismantle food

Chemical Mechanical
Digestion Digestion
- saliva is made of - teeth physically
• Amylase break down food
- enzyme that
begins chemical
digestion of
carbs
• Mucus
mechanical and chemical digestion
- lubricates food
result in a moistened ball-like mass
called bolus
SWALLOWING FOOD
 epiglottis closes off the entry way to the
trachea (leads to the lungs) so food can
move into the esophagus
ESOPHAGUS
 muscular tube ( 2 cm diameter)
 connects pharynx to stomach
 a sphincter (ring of smooth muscle
which closes a tube) connects the
esophagus to the stomach
 cardiac sphincter or lower esophageal

sphincter
ESOPHAGUS
 constriction of the cardiac sphincter prevent
reflux of food from stomach to esophagus
 peristalsis pushes food along the esophagus
towards the stomach
Peristalsis
- series of coordinated muscle contractions
that move food along the entire digestive
tract
- bolus of food stretches segments of the
esophagus
- smooth muscle behind contracts
- smooth muscle in front relaxes
PERISTALSIS
STOMACH
Structure:
 J-shaped stretchable organ
 can hold ~1.5 L of food

Function:
 reservoir to receive food all at once
 where mechanical and chemical
digestion take place
STOMACH – FUNCTION
 cells lining the stomach produce gastric
juices
- hydrochloric acid
- salts
- enzymes
- water
- mucous (protects stomach wall from
HCl)
STOMACH- FUNCTION
 Food is kept in by 2 sphincter muscles

Cardiac (top)
- constricts to keep food in
- relaxes to allow food out

Pyloric (bottom)
- constricts to keep food in
- relaxes to allow food out
STOMACH- FUNCTION
 mucus lines the stomach and forms a
protective coating against hydrochloric
acid
STOMACH- FUNCTION
Mechanical Digestion
- stomach has muscular walls that churn
and squeeze bolus
- stomach is able to expand due to the
many folds called “rugae”
RUGAE OF THE STOMACH
STOMACH FUNCTION
Chemical Digestion
- special cells lining the stomach secrete hydrochloric
acid and pepsinogen
Hydrochloric Acid:
- breaks up connective tissue in the bolus
- sterilizes the upper digestive tract and destroys
bacteria that may be ingested with food
Pespsinogen:
- inactive enzyme which gets converted to pepsin by
hydrochloric acid
Pepsin:
- enzyme that breaks down protein into short peptides
- first step in protein digestion

Hydrochloric Acid + Pepsinogen  Pepsin

STOMACH FUNCTION-
PEPSIN
STOMACH FUNCTION
 when the bolus of food mixes with
gastric juices, it turns into a liquefied
paste called “chyme”
 chyme leaves stomach through pyloric
sphincter into the small intestine
SMALL INTESTINE
 Made of 3 Parts:
1. Duodenum
2. Jejunum
3. Ileum
SMALL INTESTINE
Duodenum
 1st part of the small intestine
 receives chyme directly out of the
stomach
 receives secretions from:
- liver via the gallbladder
- pancreas
BILE DUCTS
THE LIVER – INTERACTION WITH
SMALL INTESTINE
 largest internal organ of the body (1.5 Kg)
 2 lobes (right and left)
 has many functions
- produces bile for digestion
• Mix of
• bile salts
• bile acids
• cholesterol
• fatty acids
• phospholipids
• water
SMALL INTESTINE- BILE
 bile is produced in the liver and stored
in the gallbladder (located under the
right lobe of the liver)
 fat emulsifier used in the duodenum
 act like detergent, physically breaking
up larger fat deposits into smaller fat
droplets
SMALL INTESTINE
 fat enters the duodenum
 endocrine cells in the duodenum release
a hormone called “cholecystokinin”
(CCK) into the blood
 CCK causes gall bladder to send bile into
the duodenum through the common bile
duct
SMALL INTESTINE –
PANCREAS
 lies behind stomach
 finger shaped
 3 functions:
- produces the hormones insulin &
glucagon
- produces pancreatic fluid used in
digestion in the duodenum
- produces sodium bicarbonate to
neutralize stomach acid entering the
duodenum via the pyloric sphincter
SMALL INTESTINE-
PANCREAS
 pancreatic fluid contains:
3 Types of Enzymes:
- lipase
- carbohydrases
- proteases

Sodium bicarbonate
- helps enzymes function by altering pH of
chyme from strongly acidic (pH =1) to
weakly basic (pH = 8)
SMALL INTESTINE
 acidic chyme leaves to stomach
 it can be damaging to the small intestine,
so it must be neutralized
 once HCl enters the duodenum ….
- hormone called secretin is released from
cells in the duodenal wall
- hormone goes into the blood and is
carried to the pancreas
- causes pancreas to release sodium
bicarbonate and enzymes into the
pancreatic duct which takes these
chemicals to the duodenum  pH = 8
SMALL INTESTINE
 stomach pepsin stops working as it only
functions in acidic environments
(inactive in the duodenum)
 lipases begin to break down lipids after
bile has acted on them
 carbohydrases begin to break down
polysaccharides and disaccharides
 proteases continue protein break down
(since pepsin is now inactive in a basic
environment)
SMALL INTESTINE –
JEJUNUM
 where absorption of nutrients takes
place
 remaining proteins and carbohydrates
are broken down
 mucosa contains many microscopic
projections called “villi”
- increase surface area for greater
absorption
- covered by brush like microvillli which
increase surface area
SMALL INTESTINE – VILLI
Each Villi Contains:
- Blood vessels
- Lacteal (lymphatic system)
ABSORPTION IN
MICROVILLI
 amino-acids cross epithelial cell layer
into blood vessels
 simple sugars cross epithelial cell layer
into the blood vessels
 fatty acids and glycerol cross epithelial
cell layer into lacteal
SMALL INTESTINE –
ILLIUM
 same as jejunum (few and smaller villi)
 final absorption of nutrients
 no further digestion occurs
 pushes food into the large intestine
LARGE INTESTINE
 shorter and wider than small intestine
 consists of several sections:
- cecum
- colon
- rectum
- anus
LARGE INTESTINE
 removes water from material leaving
small intestine
 hold and compact unabsorbed material
from the small intestine
LARGE INTESTINE -
PROCESS
 unabsorbed material passes from the small
intestine (ileum) into the large intestine
 passage into the cecum is regulated by the
ileocecal valve
 cecum collects chyme from ileum
 unabsorbed material moves slowly through
the colon and are reabsorbed
- water
- salts
- some vitamins
 waste products of digestion are
accumulated and prepared for excretion
LARGE INTESTINE -
PROCESS
 solid waste (feces/stool) passes through
the rectum (temporary storage) and exits
body through the anus
 feces contains:
- 75% water
- 25% solid matter
- 30% bacteria
- 30% undigested roughage
- 20% fat
- 15% inorganic matter
- 3% protein