DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION
• Digestion is the process by which complex food
materials are broken down to simple absorbable
molecules, so that they can be directly used by
the cells of the body.
• The digestive system is the organ system that
processes food, extracts nutrients from it, and
eliminates the residue.
• The study of the digestive tract and the diagnosis
and treatment of its disorders is called
gastroenterology.
General Anatomy of Alimentary Canal
• The digestive system has two anatomical
subdivisions, the digestive tract (alimentary
canal) and the accessory organs.
• The digestive tract is a tube extending from
mouth to anus, measuring about 9 meters in
length.
• It includes the oral cavity, pharynx, oesophagus,
stomach, small intestine and large intestine.
• Of these, the stomach and intestines constitute
the gastrointestinal (GI) tract.
• The accessory organs are the teeth, tongue,
salivary glands, liver, gall bladder and pancreas.
General Anatomy of Alimentary Canal
General Anatomy of Alimentary Canal
 Layers of Alimentary canal
• Most of the regions of the digestive
tract have the same basic structural
plan.
• Its wall is composed of the following
tissue layers, in order from inner to
outer surface:
• Mucosa
• Submucosa
• Muscularis
• Serosa
Layers of Alimentary canal
Layers of Alimentary canal
 Layers of Alimentary canal
• Mucosa: This is the innermost layer and
consists of an inner layer of epithelium,
a loose connective tissue layer called
lamina propria, and a thin layer of
smooth muscle called the muscularis
mucosa.
• The epithelium is simple columnar in
most areas but stratified squamous type
from oral cavity to oesophagus and in
the lower anal canal.
 Layers of Alimentary canal
Submucosa:
• It is a thicker layer of loose connective tissue
containing blood vessels, lymphatic vessels, nerve
plexus, and in some places, glands secreting
mucus.
Muscularis:
• It comprises two layers: an inner layer of circular
muscles and an outer layer of longitudinal
muscles.
• Contractions of the muscular layer help in the:
• the thorough mixing of food with digestive enzymes in
the lumen of the gut.
• Mechanical breakdown of the food in the alimentary canal.
• The propulsion of digested food through the alimentary
canal.
 Layers of Alimentary canal
Serous membrane (serosa):
▪ Serous membrane or serosa is a smooth membrane consisting of two
layers of epithelial cells, namely an inner visceral membrane and an
outer parietal membrane.
▪ The inner layer covers the visceral organs in the body cavity.
▪ This layer of mesodermal epithelium is reinforced by irregular
fibroelastic connective tissue.
▪ The outer layer of the serous membrane lines the body cavity.
▪ A lubricating fluid is present between visceral and parietallayers.
▪ Serosa is present from about the lower 3 to 4 cm of the
oesophagus and ends at the sigmoid colon.
▪ The other regions are covered by a fibrous connective tissue called
the adventitia.
▪ The stomach and intestines are enfolded and suspended from the
body wall by extensions of the peritoneum which form the
mesenteries.
 MOUTH & BUCCAL CAVITY
• It is the region of food
reception. It is guarded
by lower and upper lips
and it leads to the oral
or buccal cavity.
• The sides of the buccal
cavity are formed by
the cheeks.
• BC is bounded by the
upper and lower jaws
bearing teeth.
 BUCCAL CAVITY
• Roof of the buccal cavity is formed by the palate.
The anterior region is formed by the hard palate
and the posterior region by the soft palate.
• Posterior end of the soft palate hangs down as a
muscular flap called the uvula.
• The floor of the oral cavity is formed by the
movable muscular tongue, the anterior portion
of which is free. It is lined by squamous
epithelium and the dorsal side bears numerous
papillae on which the taste buds are present.
• Tongue also helps in mastication process and
in swallowing the food.
 TEETH
• Jaws bear teeth; total 32 in number; 16 in each jaw.
• Heterodont, diphyodont, thecodont dentition
• Four incisors, two canines, four premolars and six molars
on each jaw.
• Teeth help cut, tear and grind the food.
 TEETH
• All teeth are basically
similar in structure with
three regions: crown,
neck and root.
• The crown is the portion
above the gum, the root
is the portion below the
gum held in the socket of
the jaw bone and neck is
the portion where the
crown, root and gum
meet.
• Innermost region of a
tooth is the pulp cavity,
filled with a tissue, the
pulp and blood vessels
and nerve fibres.
 TEETH
• The odontoblasts lining the
pulp cavity secrete the dentine,
which is a hard yellowish
connective tissue that forms the
bulk of the teeth.
• Dentine of the crown is coated
with white enamel. Enamel is
composed primarily of
calcium phosphate and is the
hardest substance in the body.
• Root is fixed to the socket by
the vascular periodontal
membrane and the cementum.
• Collagen fibres from the
periodontal membrane pass to
both the cementum and jaw
bones to fix the tooth firmly.
BUCCAL CAVITY
 PHARYNX
• The buccal cavity opens to the pharynx,
which is divided into a dorsal
nasopharynx, middle oropharynx and
lower laryngopharynx.
• Paired internal nostrils and openings
of Eustachian tubes are located in
the nasopharynx. At this region the
tonsils are seen.
• At the posterior end of the tongue and
at floor of the oropharynx, there is a
slit like opening, the glottis.
• Glottis opens to the respiratory
tract. It is guarded by the
cartilaginous flap called epiglottis.
• Behind the glottis is located another
opening, the gullet, through which
the buccal cavity communicates with
the oesophagus.
 OESOPHAGUS
• Oesophagus is a straight
muscular tube 25 to 30 cm
long.
• It leads from the gullet,
pierces the diaphragm and
opens into the stomach.
• It is lined internally by
tough stratified squamous
epithelium.
• It conducts food from
mouth to stomach.
• Each swallowing initiates a
peristaltic wave in the
oesophagus, which pushes
the food to the stomach.
OESOPHAGUS
 STOMACH
• The stomach is a large
muscular J – shaped sac
with a capacity of0.9 to 2
litres.
• It lies on the left side
of the body below the
diaphragm. The medial
concave border is known
as the lesser curvature
and the lateral convex
border is known as the
greater curvature.
 STOMACH
The stomach is divided into four
regions:
1. The cardiac region or cardia
is the dilated upper region
into which the oesophagus
opens.
2. The fundic region or fundus
is the dome shaped
portion above the cardiac
region.
3. The body or corpus is the
large central portion of
the stomach.
4. the pyloric region is the
narrow funnel shaped
terminal portion, which
opens to the duodenum.
STOMACH
 STOMACH
• The pylorus is the narrow passage from stomach
to duodenum.
• The flow of food into and from the stomach is
controlled by the cardiac sphincter and pyroric
sphincter respectively.
• There are several longitudinal folds in the mucosa
of the stomach, known as gastric rugae.
• This helps stomach in distension and they are
not seen in a fully distended stomach.
• The mucosa contains simple columnar epithelium
and it has small infoldings which contains the
gastric pits and gastric glands.
STOMACH
 SMALL INTESTINE
• The small intestine is about 7 to 9 m in length and 2.5 cm
in diameter.
• It has three regions, the duodenum, jejunum and ileum.
• Duodenum is a curved portion following the stomach. It
begins at the pyloric sphincter and ends in a sharp bend
called the duodeno-jejunal flexure.
• Secretions of liver and pancreas are emptied into the
duodenum.
• The duodenum has prominent duodenal (Brunner)
glands in the submucosa. They secrete bicarbonate rich
mucus, which neutralises the acidic food from the
stomach.
• The duodenum is followed by jejunum, which is a lesser
coiled region of the small intestine.
• Ileum is the final region of the small intestine. It is
highly coiled and forms about 3.6 m in length.
SMALL INTESTINE
SMALL INTESTINE
 SMALL INTESTINE
• The mucosa of intestine has numerous finger-like
mucosal folds called villi (singular: villus) to increase
the surface area.
• A villus is covered with two kinds of epithelial cells –
columnar absorptive cells and mucus secreting
goblet cells.
• The surface of absorptive cells facing the intestinal
lumen is again produced into numerous
microscopic projections, known as microvilli or
brush border. This again increases the absorptive
area.
• Interior of the villus is formed of rich capillary
network and a lymph vessel called lacteal. Lipid
contents of the digested food are absorbed by the
lacteal.
INTESTINE VILLI
INTESTINE VILLI
 SMALL INTESTINE
• Food movement in the intestine is aided by
peristalsis and also by pendular
movements.
• In the ileum, the submucosa has nodules
of lymphatic tissue known as Peyer’s
patches.
• The intestine is protected from the lytic
activity of digestive enzymes by a lining of
glycoprotein called glycocalyx.
 LARGE INTESTINE & RECTUM
• The small intestine opens to the colon or large
intestine through the ileo-colonic valve.
• The colon is about 1.5 m long. It begins with a
caecum, a blind pouch inferior to the ileo-caecal
valve.
• Attached to the lower end of caecum is a 2 to 7
cm long blind tube, the appendix (vermiform
appendix).
• It is densely populated with lymphocytes. The
appendix sometimes may get infected and its
inflammation may cause appendicitis.
LARGE INTESTINE & RECTUM
LARGE INTESTINE & RECTUM
 LARGE INTESTINE & RECTUM
• The colon is divisible into four regions: the
ascending colon, transverse colon, descending
colon and sigmoid colon.
• The ascending colon begins at the ileo-caecal valve
and runs upward through the right side of the
abdominal cavity. It makes a 900 turn to the left
and runs horizontally as the transverse colon.
• It again makes a 900 turn downward near the
spleen and passes down as the descending colon.
• The descending colon turns medially and
downward, forming a roughly S-shaped sigmoid
colon.
• The large intestine straightens in the pelvic cavity
and ends in the rectum.
 LARGE INTESTINE & RECTUM
• Rectum is a wide tubular area where faecal
matter is temporarily stored.
• The rectum opens into the anal canal. The rectal
opening is guarded by a sphincter.
• The large intestine is devoid of villi but has
numerous mucosal folds.
• The anus is regulated by two sphincters – an
internal anal sphincter formed of smooth
muscles and an external anal sphincter
formed of skeletal muscles.
• The main function of the large intestine is
the reabsorption of water.
DIGESTIVE GLANDS
 SALIVARY GLANDS
• Three pairs of extrinsic
salivary glands - parotid,
sublingual and submaxillary
glands - open into the
buccal cavity.
• In addition numerous
intrinsic salivary glands are
also seen on the tongue, lips
and cheeks.
• The collective secretion of
salivary glands is the saliva.
• It has a pH of 5.8 to 7.1 and
contains a carbohydrate
splitting enzyme salivary
amylase or ptyalin.
• Another enzyme, lysozyme
is also seen in small
quantities.
 GASTRIC GLANDS
• They are groups of tubular secretory
cells opening in the inner lining of
the stomach.
• There are several different types
of cells in the gastric glands that
secrete different products:
1. Goblet cells secreting mucus
2. Parietal cells, secreting HCl
3. Chief cells secreting pepsinogen
4. Argentaffen cells secreting
serotonin and histamine, and
5. G cells, which secrete the
hormone gastrin.
6. The secretions of gastric glands
are together known as the
gastric juice.
 LIVER
• Liver is the largest
gland in the body that
weighs about 1.3 kg
in an adult.
• It is placed
immediately beneath
the diaphragm on the
right side.
• Liver has four lobes -
the right, left,
quadrate and caudate
lobes.
 LIVER
• The basic structural unit of liver
is the liver lobule, which is a
cylindrical structure measuring
2 mm in length and 1 mm in
diameter.
• A lobule consists of a central
vein, surrounded by radiating
sheets of cuboidal cells called
hepatocytes.
• The spaces between the sheets
of hepatocytes are blood filled
channels called hepatic
sinusoids.
• The sinusoids contain hepatic
macrophages called Kupffer
cells.
Boumphreyfr
LIVER STRUCTURE
 LIVER
STRUCTURE

Frevert U, Engelmann S, Zougbédé S, Stange J, Ng B, et al.

HUMAN LIVER
HUMAN LIVER
 LIVER: DUCT SYSTEM
• The liver secretes bile into
narrow channels, the bile
canaliculi, which join to form
larger bile ducts. They, in turn,
drain into the right and left
hepatic ducts and these
converge to form the common
hepatic duct.
• The hepatic duct joins with the
cystic duct from the gall
bladder to form the common
bile duct.
• Near the duodenum the bile
duct joins the pancreatic duct
to form a hepatopancreatic
ampulla, which opens to the
duodenal wall.
 BILE FUNCTIONS
• Bile contains no digestive enzymes,
but its alkalinity helps neutralize
the acidic chyme from the stomach.
• The pigments bilirubin and biliverdin
give a greenish yellow colour to the
bile.
• The bile salts, Sodium taurocholate
and sodium glycocholate help in the
emulsification of lipids in the chyme.
 PANCREAS
• Pancreas is the
primary source
of digestive
enzymes that
acts in the small
intestine.
• It has both
exocrine and
endocrine
functions.
Hence it is a
mixed gland.
PANCREAS: EXOCRINE & ENDOCRINE PORTIONS
 PANCREAS
• The exocrine
portion (secretory
acini) secretes the
pancreatic juice.
• The endocrine
portion (Islets of
Langerhans)
secretes
hormones,
insulin, glucagon,
somatostatin and
pancreatic
polypeptide.
 PANCREAS: ISLETS OF LANGERHANS
• Insulin: (Beta cells) Lowers blood glucose
• Glucagon: (Alpha cells)increases blood glucose
• Somatostatin: (Delta cells) Inhibits growth hormone
• Pancreatic polypeptide(PP):
• A small polypeptide consisting of 36 amino acids secreted by F
or PP cells.
• Its main function of PP is to self-regulate pancreatic secretion
activities (endocrine and exocrine).
 PANCREAS
• The exocrine
portion of pancreas
contains secretory
acini, which open
into ducts that join
together to form the
pancreatic duct. This
duct runs through
the middle of the
gland and joins the
bile duct at
hepatopancreatic
ampulla and opens
to duodenum.
 PANCREAS
▪ The pancreatic juice has a pH of 7.5
to 8.8.
▪ It contains many digestive enzymes:
▪ Proteolytic enzymes: trypsin,
chymotrypsin and carboxypeptidase
▪ Amylolytic enzyme: pancreatic
amylase
▪ Lipolytic enzyme: pancreatic lipase
▪ Nucleic acid digesting enzymes:
ribonuclease and deoxyribonuclease
 INTESTINAL GLANDS
• The intestinal wall has two types of secretory cells.
• They are glands of Brunner, which secrete mucus
and crypts of Lieberkuhn, which secrete a variety of
digestive enzymes.
• The secretions of intestinal glands are collectively
called succus entericus with a pH of 7 to 8.
• The ileum secretes a hormone called enterocrinin,
which stimulates the production of succus entericus.
• The brush border of microvilli contains brush border
enzymes, which are integral proteins of the plasma
membrane. They are not released into the lumen but
they act on the chyme when it comes in contact with
the microvilli. This process is known as contact
digestion.
ENTERIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
• The oesophagus, stomach and
intestines have a nervous
network called the enteric
nervous system, which
regulates the motility of the
digestive tract.