Human Digestive System

By:
Lec: M. Asmat Hyder Janvri
 Human Digestive System
• It is complete
• Starts from Mouth ends at Anus
• It is also referred as Gastro-Intestinal tract or GI tract
• Consists of:
– Mouth
– Pharynx
– Esophagous
– Stomach
– Small Intestine
– Large Intestine
– Anus
 Oral Cavity
• Buccal Roof: Hard palate (dome shaped and
bony) & Soft palate.
• At the mid of soft palate muscular Uvula is
present.
• On lateral sides cheeks are present.
• Both jaws possess teeth, which serve the
function of mechanical digestion.
• Upper jaw is immovable whereas lower jaw is
movable.
 Teeth
• Teeth of humans are fixed in jaws, this is known as
Thecodont.
• One set of Deciduous or Milk Teeth is replaced by
permanent teeth, this is known as Diphyodont.
• The teeth vary in shapes and sizes , this condition is known
as heterodont.
• Teeth of a human are:
– Incisors 2/2
– Canines 1/1
– Premolars 2/2
– Molars 3/3 X 2 = 32
• However one pair of molars at the end of both jaws are
rudimentary in function, and are termed as Wisdom Teeth.
21: Molars, 22: Premolar, 23: Canines, 24: Incisors, 25: Tongue, 26: Frenulum
 Tongue
• Muscular structure attached through Hyoid bone
(Hyoid Apparatus)
• Fixed at posterior end up to midline, however the
tip is free to move.
• Possess papillae, which serve the function of
taste reception, known as Taste Buds.
• On the lower side mucous membrane is present
called frenulum.
• Tongue is helpful in mastication, swallowing,
tasting and speech.
 Salivary Glands
• They produce saliva, a watery liquid in mouth.
• Saliva helps in lubrication of the food through
Mucous (Mucin), and partially digest starch into
maltose, due to presence of Ptyalin or Salivary
Amylase. Saliva also contain lysozyme which kill
the pathogens.
• Three pairs of salivary glands are present in
mouth of humans:
– Parotid glands : at the base of pinnae
– Sub-lingual: at the base of tongue
– Sub-mandibular: at the base of lower jaw
 Pharynx
• It is a cavity which receives chewed up food, air in and out
of trachea, and equalize the pressure in the ear through
eustachian tube.
• Major muscles for swallowing are Pharyngeal constrictors,
which slightly overlap eachother forming rear and sides of
pharyngeal wall.
• After chewing of the food, it becomes in ball like shape
called bolus.
• Bolus is pushed by tongue into pharynx, it is known as
Swallowing or Deglutition.
• It is voluntary process, at the time of deglutition, the
mastication stops and air passage is blocked by epiglottis to
prevent the bolus from entering into larynx.
 Peristalsis
• Involuntary movement of the muscles of gut muscles.
• It is rhythmic and the stimulus for this movement is the
distension of the gut wall due to bolus.
• Gut wall contains circular muscles and longitudinal
muscles, their collective movement drives the bolus
through out the GI tract.
– Antiperistalsis or Reverse peristalsis: it is the upward
movement of the gut muscles driving the food in upper
part of GI tract back to mouth, caused by pathogens etc,
and the feeling is known as nausea, and throw up of the
gut contents through mouth is called vomitting.
 Stomach
• It is bag like “J” shaped structure.
• Anterior end or cardiac end is connected with
esophagous, whereas the posterior end or pyloric
end is connected with small intestine.
• At both ends sphincters are present which
prevent the contents of the stomach to return
back to esophagous or prematurely into small
intestine, these sphincters are named as cardiac
sphincter and pyloric sphincter respectively.
 Structure of Stomach
• Stomach is divided into:
– Cardia:
– Fundus
– Corpus (Body)
– Pylorus
• The wall of the stomach consist of:
– Mucosa: contains numerous tubular glands
– Sub-mucosa: contain blood vessels, nerves etc.
– Mucularis externa: thick in some areas, contains three layers of
smooth muscles, not always visible, inner most layer of muscles
is oblique, middle layer is circular and outer is longitudinal.
– Serosa: it is outer most layer and secretes a fluid which prevents
friction from muscle movement.
 Structure of Stomach
• Rugae: are longitudinal folds in stomach
• Gastric pits: these are furrows in the lining of
stomach.
• Gastric pits are continuous at their base with
tubular glands.
• Mucosa has mucoid cells, which secrete the
mucous and bicarbonate ions, gastric mucous is
glycoprotein which lubricates the food and
protects the inner wall of stomach from HCl and
Pepsin.
 Structure of Stomach
• Cardia: contains cardiac glands, which secrete mucous only.
• Fundus and Corpus: contain gastric glands or fundic glands,
secrete mucous (from mucoid cells) and HCl (from parietal
cells or oxyntic cells) and an intrinsic factor (important in
maturation of RBCs, Vitamin B12 absorption in intestine,
and health of certain cells of CNS and PNS), zymogen cells
or chief cells secrete Pepsinogen (precursor of Pepsin).
• Pylorus: contains pyloric glands, which secrete mucous and
gastrin (release by stimuli such as distention of stomach
and increased HCl)
• Endocrine cells are present throughout stomach wall which
secrete Serotonin, which inhibit the gastric acid secretion
 Physiology of Stomach
• Stimuli such as smell, taste, sound, sight etc, caused the Vagus nerve to
send signal to the brain.
• Vagus nerve is the main component of parasympathetic nervous system.
• Gastrin stimulates the release of gastric juice.
• HCl softens the food, kills the pathogens and convert the Pepsinogen into
Pepsin
• pH of stomach remains at 1.5 to 2.5
• In infants other proteolytic enzyme is also released called as Renin or
Chymosin, which turns Caseinogen (insoluble protein) into Casein (soluble
protein) which is then digested by Pepsin.
• Muscular contraction churn the food and gastric food act on the food and
convert it into paste called chyme.
• Stomach absorbs few digestive products, water, glucose, some amino
acids etc
 Small Intestine
• It is 3-4 cm wide and around 6m in length.
• Starts at pyloric end of the stomach.
• It is divided into three regions:
– Duodenum
– Jejunum
– Ileum
 Duodenum
• It is about 30cm long, forming a “C” shaped curve.
• Initial part forms a bulb like dilation called duodenal bulb.
• Duodenum received bile and pancreatic juice through Hepatopancreatic
duct or common bile duct.
• Stimulus for bile secretion is peptide hormone released by duodenum
called cholecystokinin which also stimulates pancreas for pancreatic juice
release.
• Secretin another hormone is also released by duodenum which stimulates
pancreas to release water and bicarbonate ions.
• Bicarbonate ions and Bile neutralize the chyme and further increase in
their concentration turns it into alkaline.
• Bile contains brownish yellow pigment Bilirubin, and greenish Biliverdin,
along with water and salts.
• Duodenal walls also contain Brunner’s glands which release mucous rich
alkaline secretion, containing bicarbonate ions.
 Pancreatic Juice
• Contains Trypsinogen, which is converted into
Trypsin by enterokinase enzyme secreted by
duodenum, trypsin is a proteolytic enzyme.
• Chymotrypsin is also an proteolytic enzyme
which converts casein into short chain of amino
acids.
• Pancreatic amylase acts on starch and glycogen
and convert them into maltose.
• Lipase breaks down emulsified lipids
(emulsification is caused by bile etc) into fatty
acids and glycerol.
 Jejunum
• It is the middle portion of small intestine and is
about 2.5m long.
• Responsible for digestion and absorption of
nutrients.
• It secretes:
– Maltase: digests maltose
– Sucrase: digests sucrose
– Lactase: digests lactose
– Peptidase: digests small peptides
– Nucleotidase: convert nucleotides into nucleosides
 Ileum
• Last region of small intestine about 3.6m long.
• It serves the function of absorption of nutrients i.e., Vitamin B12
etc, not absorbed by jejunum.
• Villi are abundant in ileum, and are present in fold called plicae
circulares.
• Each villi possess further small projection called microvilli.
• Villi has dense network of blood vessels and lacteals, which absorb
the nutrients into the blood.
• Small lymph vessels merge into large vessels which then drain fats
(chylomicrons) and other nutrients into subclavian vein.
• Blood vessels containing fat merge into hepatic portal vein which
supplies the nutrients to liver for processing such as storage etc.
• Due to smooth muscles villi can bring themselves closer to the food
for efficient absorption.
 Large Intestine
• At the end of ileum, large intestine starts.
• It is divided into:
– Caecum: contain ileocaecal valve, water and salts are absorbed here,
caecum projects out vermiform appendix which is rudimentary in
function.
– Colon: consists of ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon
and sigmoid colon, it is responsible for absorption of water, minerals,
vitamins etc., and it also houses the symbiotic bacteria, that synthesize
Niacin (Nicotinic acid), Thiamin (B1) and Vitamin K.
• Rectum: sigmoid colon opens into rectum which 13 cm long, it is
filled with feces, and opens outside through anus, opening of anus
is regulated by anal sphincter, the push to the feces for egestion is
given by skeletal muscles, in neonates it is automatic.
 Liver
• Brown, four lobed structure, enclosed in elastic capsule
partially covered by peritoneum.
• Hepatocytes are composing units of liver.
• Functions of liver:
– Bile secretion
– Metabolism & Homeostasis
– Synthesis of plasma proteins i.e., blood clotting factors
– Breakdown of erythrocytes
– Defense
– Detoxification
– Inactivation of hormones i.e., insulin, glucagon etc
– Thermogenesis
– Storage
 Pancreas
• It is 12 to 15cm long
• It is exocrine and endocrine in function
• Possess small lobules which drain in
pancreatic duct which join hepatopancreatic
duct by hepatopancreatic ampulla.
• Duodenal opening of hepatopancreatic duct is
regulated by hepatopancreatic sphincter
 Disorders of the Digestive System
• Ulcer: sore in the wall of stomach, generally
caused by infection of Helicobacter pylori,
symptoms include heart burn, nausea, vomiting,
abdominal pain etc.
• Food poisoning: caused by infestation of bacteria
etc on the food, the microorganisms release their
enzymes which cause problems upon ingestion of
that food, symptoms include fever, abdominal
pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea etc. Severe form
of food poisoning is Botulism, caused by
Clostridium botulinum.
 Disorders of the Digestive System
• Dyspepsia: indigestion, symptoms include
nausea, vomiting, bloating etc.
• Obesity: caused by over eating,
• Anorexia nervosa: psychological disorder, in
which a person fear of gaining weight
• Bulimia nervosa: psychological disorder, in
which a person starts to eat overly.