Chapter D6 Digestion Checklist Types of Nutrients How Enzymes aid digestion Why do we need to eat?

We need food to: o provide us with energy for growth, movement & maintaining a healthy body; o grow new cells and tissues; and repair worn out tissues. o Keep us healthy Main types of Nutrients There are three main types of nutrients: carbohydrates, proteins and fats. . Carbohydrates The main carbohydrates in food are starch and sugars(Sucrose, Glucose) Animal Produce & Plant Produce Starch: Potatoes, noodles, bread & rice. Sugars: Ripe fruits & sweets Animal Produce: Fish meat, egg white, cheese. Plant Produce: Soya beans & Nuts. For Energy

Protein

For the growth & repair for damaged tissues.

Fats & Oils

Animal & Plant Fats

Animal fats: Butter & Oily For energy fishes. Plant fats: Cooking Oils

Why must food be digested ? We can only use the nutrients in the food we eat when they pass through the gut walls into the blood vessels. Here, the nutrients can be carried through the bloodstream to all parts of the body. The gut walls and blood vessels are made up of cells. The cell membrane has small openings (or pores) that allow small molecules to enter, but not large molecules. Nutrients like glucose and amino acids are small molecules. They can pass through the cell membranes easily and enter the bloodstream

 But most major nutrients in food are large molecules which cannot pass through the cell membranes. They must be broken down into molecules that are small enough to pass through the cell membranes. This process is called digestion. Digestion is the breaking down of large, complex food molecules into small, simpler molecules. Our body is able to carry out digestion by producing complex proteins called enzymes. The enzymes involved in digestion are called digestive enzymes.

Digestion of Nutrients (Drawing)

Carbohydrates 1. Carbon, hydrogen & oxygen 2. Provides Energy 3. Monosaccharide -------------) Disaccharides -----------------) Polysaccharides Protein 1. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen(unique to protein), phosphorus at times The digestive System 2. For repair & growth 3. Last resort as energy source as conversion ratio is low 4. Amino acids------------------) Peptones/ Peptides---------------------) Polypeptides Fats 1. Carbon, hydrogen & oxygen 2. Saturated, Unsaturated fats 3. Insulation. High in energy content but no used as first choice as it is difficult to break down. Enzymes

Nutrients like glucose and amino acids, are small, soluble molecules. They can pass through the cell membrane. Nutrients like starch, proteins and fats, are large, complex molecules. They cannot pass through the cell membrane.

What are Enzymes ? Enzymes are complex proteins that speed up the rate of chemical reactions. Enzymes remain unchanged at the end of chemical reactions. Enzymes act like chemical scissors. They break down large molecules into small molecules to speed up the process of digestion (biological catalysts)

Complex food Molecules Carbohydrates Proteins Fats/Lipoids

Digest by enzymes called Carbohydrases Proteases Lipases

Simple food Molecules Simple Sugars Amino Acids Glycerol & fatty Acids

Action of Enzymes 1. Enzymes are very specific in reactions (each enzyme has its own specific active site 2. 3. 4. shape). Needed in small amounts. Works best at 37 C Works best at a specific pH: Mouth-7 to 7.5, Stomach-2 to 4, Small intestine-8 to 9.

Drawings of Enzymes Reaction

Effect on temperature on enzyme activity 1. 2. 3. Inactive in low temperatures Denatured at high temperatures Optimum Temperature is where enzyme activity is highest, best

Effect on pH enzyme activity 1. 2. 3. Enzymes work well within a narrow range of pH Beyond this narrow range, the enzyme is denatured and loses its function Optimum pH is where enzyme activity is at its best.

Digestive System in General -Broken down into 2 Major parts The Alimentary canal: A long tube that starts from the mouth & ends at the anus. -It is 9 meters long -Food enters via mouth, waste substances come out via the anus. Organs joined to the alimentary canal: They provide enzymes & liquids which ar needed for digestion.

The Mouth Food is chewed in the mouth with the teeth. Chewing helps to cut and grind the food the smaller pieces. This increases the surface area and allows the food to be digested faster. As food is chewed, salivary glands in the mouth secrete saliva.

Saliva serves two purposes: Wets the food, so that it is easier to swallow. Digests starch into sugars with the help of an enzyme called salivary amylase. While chewing food, the tongue rolls the food into small balls when are pushed to the back of the mouth and squeezed into the oesophagus. This is known as swallowing.

The oseophagus The oesophagus is a long muscular tube leading to the stomach. By contracting and relaxing, the muscles help to push the food down to the stomach. This is how food moves along the rest of the gut too. No digestion occurs in the oesophagus. However, the digestion of starch by amylase may continue as the food moves to the stomach.

The Stomach The stomach is a muscular bag that lies in the upper part of the abdomen. Its muscles contract and relax, causing food to break up into even smaller pieces. This movement also mixes the food well with gastric juice for better digestion. Gastric juice is secreted by glands in the stomach walls, into the stomach cavity. It contains: o proteases which digest proteins; and o hydrochloric acid, which helps proteases to work ph level of 1-2 Hydrochloric acid kills any bacteria in the food. Food stays in the stomach for a few hours before passing into the small intestine, bit by bit. The Small Intestine The small intestine is a long muscular tube, which is about 6 m long. The liver and the pancreas are connected to the small intestine. Food is mixed with 3 fluids in the small intestine to aid digestion: o Intestinal juice from the walls of the intestine. It contains the enzymes maltase, proteases and lipases. o Pancreatic juice from the pancreas. o Bile from the liver. Pancreas The pancreas produces pancreatic juice. The juice contains the enzymes maltase, protease and lipase. The digestion of food in the small intestine are as follows: o Digestion of fats: Fat 3Fatty acids, 1Glycerol

 The digestion of food in the small intestine are as follows: o Digestion of starch: Starch Maltose Maltose Glucose o Digestion of small protein molecules Protein molecules amino acids

The Liver The liver produces a yellowish-green fluid called bile. Bile is stored in the gall bladder. The gall bladder has a duct (a small tube) that carries bile into the small intestine. Bile does not contain digestive enzymes, but helps to break up fast into smaller oil droplets in a process known as emulsification. This increases the surface area of the oil and allows the fats to be digested quickly by the lipases in the pancreatic and intestinal juices. Absorption in the Small Intestine The small intestine allows only small molecules like sugar and amino acids to pass through its wall and into the bloodstream. Large molecules like starch and proteins cannot pass through the walls of the small intestine. Digestion ends in the small intestine. The final products of digestion are glucose, amino acids, fatty acids and glycerol. After digestion, the smaller digested food molecules can pass through the wall of the small intestine and into the bloodstream. Undigested matter is mostly made up of fibre. Together with water and mineral salts, the undigested food passes into the large intestine.

Fibre can be found in vegetables. It is important for the gut muscles to move the food along the gut.

The Large Intestine The large intestine is about 1.5 m long. Its function is to absorb water and mineral salts. This takes place in the colon. What is left now is a nearly solid waste called faeces. This is temporarily stored in the rectum, before being expelled through the anus is a process called egestion.

Digested food entering the blood 1. 2. Digested food is made up of small, soluble molecules. Theses molecules diffuse through the walls of the small intestine into numerous blood vessels. They are then carried away by the blood to the rest of the body. This is known as : Absorption of food

3. 4. . Features of walls of the small intestine.-Making ABSORPTION easier 1. 2.

Large Surfaces area for absorption to digested food molecules Aided by: Presence of many villi (finger like projections), Length of small intestine(7m) Thin wall: Only one cell thick: Shortens the distance between wall & blood vessels.