Disorders of the Digestive Track..

The digestive track is the system of organs within multicellular animals that takes in food, digests it to extract energy and nutrients, and expels the remaining waste. The major functions of the GI tract are ingestion, digestion, absorption, and defecation.

The upper GI tract consists of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, and stomach. The mouth contains the buccal mucosa, which contains the openings of the salivary glands; the tongue, and the teeth.

Behind the mouth lies the pharynx, which leads to a hollow muscular tube, the esophagus.

Peristalsis takes place, which is the contraction of muscles to propel the food down the esophagus which extends through the chest and pierces the diaphragm to reach the stomach.

The lower GI tract comprises the intestines and anus.

Intestines or bowel : 1) Small intestine, which has three parts: Duodenum, Jejunum, Ileum. 2) Large intestine, which has three parts: Cecum (the vermiform appendix is attached to the cecum).Colon (ascending colon, transverse colon, descending colon and sigmoid flexure). Rectum and Anus

Accessory organs to the alimentary canal include the liver, gallbladder, and pancreas. The liver secretes bile into the small intestine via the biliary system, employing the gallbladder as a reservoir. Apart from storing and concentrating bile, the gallbladder has no other specific function. The pancreas secretes an isosmotic fluid containing bicarbonate and several enzymes, including trypsin, chymotrypsin, lipase, and pancreatic amylase, as well as nucleolytic enzymes (deoxyribonuclease and ribonuclease), into the small intestine. Both of these secretory organs aid in digestion.

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