Epithelial Tissues

-covers entire body and most of the inner cavities

-outer epidermis (skin) protects from injury and drying out
-inner epidermal tissue protects & secretes mucous
-can be single layer or stratified (stacked layers)
-inside mouth and nose – stratified squamous epithelium)

Squamous Epithelium
-protection, diffusion, filtration
-flat cells
-lines alveoli, blood vessels

Cuboid Epithelium
-secretion, adsorption, protection
-cube shaped cells
-line kidney tubules, surface of ovaries

Columnar Epithelium
-column shaped
-often microvilli or cilia to aid function
-line intestine, oviduct, uterus

Pseudostratified Columnar
-appear to be layered, but is really 1 layer of cells
-line respiratory tract

Muscle Tissues
-composed of fibres made of actin and myosin proteins
-movement

Skeletal Muscle
-striated (alternating light and dark bands)
-used for movement
-voluntary control
-can contract quickly and strongly but will fatigue over time
-attached to bones

Smooth Muscle
-non-striated
-involuntary control
-contracts more slowly but can contract over a longer period of time
-walls of internal organs, intestine, stomach, blood vessels

Cardiac Muscle
-striated
-involuntary
-contracts quickly
-only heart muscle

Nervous Tissue
-forms nerves, brain, spinal cord
-conducts electrical and chemical messages along neurons
→neurons: composed of cell body, dendrites (conduct messages to cell body),
axon (send messages away from cell body)
-axons and dendrites are nerve fibres
-nerves: bundles of nerve fibres
-nerves conduct messages t and from spinal cord, brain, and sense organs to register
sensation and trigger muscle movement
-glial cells: cells surrounding nerve cells; support, protect, nourish, keep free of debris

Connective Tissue
-binds structures together, support, protection, store fat, fill up space
-cells in connective tissue usually in matrix made of collagen or elastin
→matrix: non-cellular material found between cells

Loose
-join tissue
-hold organs in place
-fat storage

Fibrous
-bundles of collagen fibres
-very strong
-used in tendons (connect muscle to bone)
-used in ligaments (connect bone to other joints)

Cartliage
-flexible matrix rich in protein and fibres
-nose, ears, vertebrae, ends of bones

Bone
-rigid connective tissue
-matrix of calcium salts

Blood
-matrix is liquid → plasma

Organs: Skin
-many internal organs enclosed in a coelom, a cavity within the body

Outer Layer → Epidermis

-composed of stratified squamous epithelial cells
-basal cells at base of this layer produce new cells
-pigment cells (melanocytes) here produce melanin (responsible for skin colour)
-keratin protein hardens skin cells (hair/nails made of tightly packed keratinized cells)

Middle Layer → Epidermis

-loose connective tissue with many elastic fibres
-sweat glands, nerve endings, blood vessels, and hair follicles

Bottom Layer → Epidermis

-Loose connective tissue containing adipose cells (fat)
A few Fundamentals...
Most of the digestive processes occur within a hollow tube ~ 5m long (alimentary canal or
gastrointestinal tract) that runs through the abdomen. The lumen of this tube is continuous w/ the
external environment. The contents of the digestive tract are technically outside the body.
ms

mucosal – lumen side of the tissue

serosal – blood side of the tissue

Roles: digestion (break down food) & absorption (nutrients cross tissue membranes to blood stream to
be processed)

Pancreas
specialized as both an endocrine and exocrine gland
-endocrine: hormone-producing
-exocrine:
Endo> It produces and secretes the hormones insulin and glucagon; these enter the blood and travel
the body – insulin lowers blood sugar levels by increasing the cell’s ability to use it and promoting its
storage in the form of glycogen by the liver. Glucagon allows the liver to release glucose from
glycogen when blood sugar levels drop
Exo> produces pancreatic juice (released to the duodenum via pancreatic duct)
-mixture: water, sodium bicarbonate, lipase, trypsinogen (becomes trypsin), nucleases, and
pancreatic amylase

Liver
functions
-regulate glucose level in blood
-glucose should comprise 0.1% of blood plasma
-if level too high glucose stored as glycogen by liver
-if level too low glycogen broken down into glucose
*see insulin and glucagon under ‘Pancreas’
- produce urea
-from breakdown of amino acids (nitrogen wastes)
urea O
H2N - C - NH2
-urea does not affect blood pH as ammonia (NH3) or ammonium ions (NH4+) would
-urea filtered from blood by kidneys
-detoxify blood
-liver metabolizes alcohol into fatty acids
-produce bile
-composed of the breakdown products of haemoglobin (biliruben and biliverden) and
bile salts
-bile stored in gall bladder until a hormone signals its release (goes through bile duct to
duodenum)
-bile emulsifies fats (increases SA and thus increases efficiency of lipase enzyme wich
breaks them down into glycerol and fatty acids)
-produce blood proteins (globulins)
-ex. albumin, fibrinogen, prothrombin
-destroy old red blood cells
-lifespan ~ 4 months
-useful components are recycled
-iron from haemoglobin is returned to bone marrow for new cells
-rest of the haemoglobin molecule is “worn out” and gets converted to biliruben
and biliverden
Process

Digestion begins in mouth

-physical digestion to increase SA (mass of chewed food = bolus)
-chemical digestion via saliva (salivary glands: parotid, sub-lingual, sub-mandibular): mixture of
H2O, mucin, salivary amylase (breaks bonds b/w sugar molecules of starch to begin chemical
conversion to maltose)
amylase
starch + H2O maltose
The water is needed for the above reaction but also moistens & lubricates the food to
make it easier to swallow. Mucin also acts as a lubricant.

Tongue pushes bolus to back of throat – swallowing = voluntary contractions of 2 of layers smooth
muscles lining pharynx & esophagus
-pharynx: common passageway for food (esophagus) & air (trachea – has epiglottis: ventral
flap of tissue to prevent food/liquid from entering lungs)
-esophagus: tube connecting mouth & stomach; food moved via peristalsis (involuntary,
rhythmic contractions by smooth muscle)

At end of esophagus is the lower esophageal sphincter* (circular muscle that can close off the
stomach entrance – prevent things from coming up)
*also termed cardiac sphincter, gastroesophageal sphincter, and esophageal sphincter

Stomach
-epithelial layer is invaginated forming tubular glands; 3 types of secreting cells:
mucous cells
gastric (at top) > mucous
glands
(exocrine
parietal secretions)
cells (sides) > HCl
chief cells (at bottom) > pepsinogen (inactive)
-secretes mucous to protect from acid
-presence of food causes release of gastrin, a hormone secreted from lower portion of
stomach (antrum)
-travels from the cells of the stomach walls to the bloodstream
-as it circulates it affects the stomach and causes the release of gastric juice
-Gastrin makes its way to the upper stomach & stimulates the release of gastric juices
-stimulated by protein
-inhibited by high [H+] (low pH)
-gastric juice: H2O, HCl, pepsinogen (inactive)
-bolus becomes chyme ( “acid chyme”) (as gastric juices mix with food)
-HCl creates low pH (~2.5) environment to kill bacteria
-HCl reacts with pepsinogen to form pepsin (active)
-Pepsin is an enzyme that digests proteins(a protease) (via hydrolysis) into smaller
polypeptide strands. Optimum conditions for this enzyme: low pH (2-3) caused by HCl
-Pepsin is secreted as precursor pepsinogen rather than its final active form b/c it’s a
protein-digesting enzyme – a cell couldn’t survive production of it in active form

At “end” of stomach is pyloric sphincter, entrance to duodenum (fist section of small intestine)
-duodenum is specialized by the presence of chemoreceptors (chemical sensitive nerve
endings that are able to detect different biochemicalls in the food material; in this way the
digestive system can regulate which secretions are released

When signalled to, the gall bladder releases the fat emulsifying bile & the pancreas releases
pancreatic juice (into duodenum via pancreatic duct)
 -sodium hydrogen carbonate to neutralize HCl
-nucleases > RNA & DNA into nucleotides
-the bicarbonate ions (from sodium bicarbonate in pancreatic juice) ‘over-neutralize’ the chyme
& buffer it at pH ~8.3
-the enzymatic components of pancreatic juice are active at this pH
-lipase – converts emulsified lipids into fatty acids & glycerol
-trypsin (a protease) (trypsinogen is inactive form) breaks many bonds to
convert various polypeptides into smaller peptide units
-pancreatic amylase breaks remaining starch into maltose
-the final enzymes are nucleases which convert some of the nucleic acids into
nucleotides and nucleotidases which break nucleotides into their component
molecules
-these enzymes are all active in the duodenum

The small intestine also produces and secretes its own enzymes
-disacchsidases (ex. Maltase, lactase) complete the digestion of carbohydrates
-peptidases digests polypeptides > AA’s
-also a variety of nuckeases which complete digestion of nucleic acids
-Maltase – maltose (starch digestion product) > glucose
-Nucleosidases – digest nucleotides > sugar, PO4-3, base
-Lactase – milk sugars/proteins
The SI also secretes hormones that regulate the digestive enzumes
-secretin – stimulated by the presence of HCl in the chime. This increases release of NaHCO3
by pancreas
-cholecystokinen (CKK) – stimulated by presence of polypeptides and fats. This increases the
-release of bile from gall bladder and enzymes from pancreas

Gastric inhibitory peptide (GIP) – stimulated by presence of fatty acids and amino acids and
monosaccharides. It inhibits gastric secretions and gastric motility (basically shuts down the
stomach’s actions)

Longest part of SI is called the ileum

-specialized to absorb products of digestion
-huge SA – SI is convoluted (it twists, turns, and folds in the abdominal cavity)
-lined with specialized structures for absorption by active transport – villi
-the epithelial cells lining the villi are equipped with mitochondria to produce the
required ATP
-the epithelial cells making up villi are folded > microvilli
-each villus has capillary bed and a lacteal (a lymph vessel, an adsorptive end of the
lymphatic system)
-Unit molecules- glucose, amino acids, etc are absorbed across the villi walls and into
the blood capillaries. Fatty acids are asorbed into the lymph vessels, the lactreals
-the products of fat digestion are reconstituted into neutral fats by the epithelial cells
before they enter the lacteals, the rest of the products enter the blood stream
-Adsorption is an active process and so requires energy > transepithelial transport.
Blood vessels of the SI flow together into thge hepatic portal vein which takes absorbed
nutrients to the liver

Once the available nutrients are absorbed, the remains (water, indigestible materials) passes from the
ileum through the ileo-caecal valve (a sphincter) into the large intestine (colon)
-caecum: the first part of the colon [ascending colon]
-appendix: vestigial structure extending down from the caecum
-the colon’s main function is to reclaim water
-contains E. Coli – a bacterium that metabolizes some of what our bodies cant
 -symbiotic relationship – it gets nutrients from waste materials
-their metabolism releases minerals and manufactures some vitamins and AA’s – these
nutrients are absorbed with the water into the circulatory system
-the bacteria begin decomposition of waste materials and convert them to feces
-transcending colon
-rectum: last part of the colon, stores feces until defication (ends with anal sphincter)
-after sigmoid colon, which is after transcending

Disorders of the GI Tract

-colon cancer – thought to be due to long term presence of feces in colon
-constipation – retention of feces
-diarrhea – poor water readsorption > dehydration – dysentery
-IBS – irritable bowel syndrome, colitis – stress
-ulcers – excess gastric juices ‘eat’ the lining of stomach or esophagus or duodenum
-liver disorders – hepatitis: inflammation of the liver often due to infection of liver cells
-gall stones: crystals of cholesterol, grow and block duct of gall bladder or bile duct
* -itis – inflammation

Nutrition
 Name Source Roles Products of

breads, pastas, beans, storage and transport of

Carbohydrates potatoes, bran, rice, energy, structural C, H, O
cereals components

meat, eggs, tofu, cheese,

Proteins enzymes amino acids
nuts

Fats meat, eggs storing excess energy glycerol and fatty acids

helping to eliminate
whole grains, skins of
Fibre feces and relieve short-chain fatty acids
fruit vegetables, plants
constipation

A.

B. Vitamins
i) Which vitamins are water soluble?
B, C
*cannot store
Which vitamins are fat soluble?
A, D, E, K
*can store

ii) Which vitamins act as anti-oxidants?

A, C, E

iii) Why do we need vitamin D & where does it come from?

increase the flow of calcium into the bloodstream, necessary for bone growth and bone
remodelling, without sufficient vitamin D, bones can become thin, brittle, or misshapen; Vitamin
D is naturally produced by the human body when exposed to direct sunlight, such foods as
milk, yogurt, margarine, oil spreads, breakfast cereal, pastries, and bread are fortified with
vitamin D2 and/or vitamin D3, to minimize the risk of vitamin D deficiency

iv) What are examples of conditions caused by vitamin deficiencies?

Scurvy
Anemia (iron – mineral)
Hypertension
Constipation

C. Minerals
i) What are minerals?
the chemical elements required by living organisms, other than the four elements carbon,
hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen present in common organic molecules.

ii) Why do we need – calcium? Bones, muscles, heart, blood clots

iron? carrier of oxygen in the body
sodium? regulate the fluidity of our blood
potassium? assists in muscle contraction and in maintaining fluid and electrolyte
balance in body cells

iii) Give an example of a relationship that exists between a vitamin and a mineral
vitamin d and calcium