Dr. Nurdin A. Mappewali, Sp. Biok.

Department of Biochemistry
Faculty of Medicine UNHAS
Biomedical Science 2
Makassar, 3
rd
March 2011

Introduction
General Principles of Digestion
Digestive Juices and Enzymes
Digestion and Absorption of
Carbohydrates
Digestion and Absorption of Lipids
Protein Digestion and Amino Acid
Absorption
Liver and Bilirubin Metabolism


Biochemistry is the study of the molecular
events that correspond to the phenomenon
of life

Digestion and absorption
Digestion is considered as the degradation
of the nutrient molecules into components
simple enough to be subsequently
absorbed in the intestine

Absorption is the uptake of digested
components by the intestinal cells
(enterocytes).
Digestion:
Mechanical digestion: breaking food in small
particles so they are easily broken down by
enzymes mouth and stomach
Chemical digestion: pancreas and duodenum

Nutrient absorption: small intestine

Water reabsorption: colon

Koolman, 2004
The process of digestion is characterized
by several specific stages
Interaction of fluid, pH, emulsifying agents, and
enzymes

This requires concerted actions of the
salivary glands, pancrease, gall bladder,
and liver
Lubrications and homogenizations
Secretion of enzymes
Secretion of electrolytes, hydrogen ion,
and bicarbonate
Secretion of the bile acids
Further hydrolysis of the oligomers and
dimers
Specific transport of digested material
Major function of the gastrointestinal organs in
digestion and absorption

Organ Primary function
Salivary glands
Production of fluid and digestive enzymes for homogenization,
lubrication, and digestion of carbohydrate (amylase) and lipid (lingual
lipase)
Stomach Secretion of HCl and proteases to initiate hydrolysis of proteins
Pancrease
Secretion of HCO3
-
, proteases, lipases, and amylase to continue
digestion of protein, lipid, and carbohydrate respectively
Liver Elaboration of bile acids
Gallblader Storage and concentration of bile
Small intestine
Final intraluminal digestion of foodstuffs, digestion of carbohydrate
dimers and specific absorptive pathway for digested material
Large intestine
Absorption of fluid and electrolyte and products of bacterial action in
colon
The organs involved in digestion and absorption
has the capacity to increase its activity several fold
in response to specific stimulation




Minor functional loss may unnoticed by the
individual, allowing the pathology to progress for
some time before being diagnosed

Approximately 30 g of digestive enzymes
are secreted per day
Exocrine gland

The salivary, gastric mucosa, pancrease

Contain specialized cell for synthesis, packaging, and
transport of the enzymes to the cell surface , and thence
to the intestinal lumen


All digestive enzymes hydrolyze their
substrates
The products of such hydrolytic
procedures are oligomers, dimers, and
monomers of parent macromolecules

Koolman, 2004
Salivary enzymes
The main function of saliva is not the digestion of
nutrients but the conversion of food into a
homogeneous mass during mastication


Salivary
Proteins
Anti-
Bacterial
Buffering
Digestion
Mineral-
ization
Lubricat-
ion &Visco-
elasticity
Tissue
Coating
Anti-
Fungal
Anti-
Viral
Carbonic anhydrases,
Histatins
Amylases,
Mucins, Lipase
Cystatins,
Histatins, Proline-
rich proteins,
Statherins
Mucins, Statherins
Amylases,
Cystatins, Mucins,
Proline-rich proteins, Statherins
Histatins
Cystatins,
Mucins
Amylases, Cystatins,
Histatins, Mucins,
Peroxidases
adapted from M.J. Levine, 1993


Stomach
In the stomach the
food is mixed,
stored for some time
then finally discharge
into the duodenum
Gastrin
Distension of the stomach
Proteins and polypeptide
Vagal stimulation
Plasma calcium concentration
Circulating catecholamines



Gastrin increases acid secretion and the acid then feeds
back to inhibit further gastrin secretion
Stimulating
gastrin
secretion
Pepsinogen and intrinsic factor
Increases gastric motility
Stimulates the growth of gastric
mucosa
Gastrin

Acid in the antrum
Blood-borne factors
(secretin, GIP, VIP,
glucagon, calcitonin)

Inhibiting
gastrin
secretion
Gastrointestinal hormones

Gastrin, cholecystokinin, secretin,
pancreozimin, enterokrin belongs to the
group of gastrointestinal hormones

All of these are formed in the gastrointestinal
tract and mainly act in the
vicinity of the site where they are formed
i. e., they are paracrine hormones
Hormon-hormon penting dalam pengaturan
pencernaan usus halus:
Sekretin: merangsang kelenjar pankreas mengeluarkan getah
yang mengandung bikarbonat. Pelepasan hormon ini distimulasi
oleh HCl lambung
Kolesistokinin: merangsang kontraksi serta pengosongan
kandung empedu. Pelepasan hormon ini distimulasi oleh lemak
yang bersentuhan dengan mukosa duodenum
Pankreozimin: merangsang kelenjar pankreas mengeluarkan
getah yang kaya enzim; distimulasi oleh hasil-hasil pencernaan
protein
Enterokrin: merangsang pengaliran getah intestin
Hormon-hormon di atas dihasilkan oleh mukosa
duodenum
(Hardjasasmita, 2004; Price, 1995)


Pancrease secretions

Pancrease secretions

Small intestine enzymes
The glands of the small intestine (the
Lieberkhn and Brunner glands), the
microvilli of the intestinal epithelium secrete
additional digestive enzymes that ensure
almost complete hydrolysis of the food
components previously broken down by the
endoenzymes
Zymogens
Some digestive enzymes are potentially so
damaging to the cells that synthesizes them that
they are secreted as inactive precursors

Among the digestive enzymes, the proteases and
phospholipases are dangerous

Once secreted, these zymogens are converted
into their active forms. This activation process is
irreversible
Pepsinogen pepsin

Trypsinogen tripsin

Chymotrypsinogen chymotrypsin

Proelastase elastase

Procarboxypeptidase carboxypeptidase
H
+

enteropeptidase
tripsin
tripsin
tripsin
Overview of
carbohydrate digestion.
Digestion of the
carbohydrates occurs
first, followed by
absorption of
monosaccharides.
Subsequent metabolic
reactions occur after the
sugars are absorbed

Lieberman, 2009
Action of salivary and
pancreatic -amylases

Lieberman, 2009

Metabolism of Sugars by Colonic Bacteria
Some indigestible
carbohydrates. These
compounds are
components of dietary
fiber
Lieberman, 2009
Digestion of triacylglycerols in
the intestinal lumen
TG, triacylglycerol; bs, bile
salts; FA, fatty acid; 2-MG, 2-
monoacylglycerol.

Lieberman, 2009
1
2
1. Action of pancreatic lipase. Fatty acids (FA) are cleaved from
positions 1 and 3 of the triacylglycerol, and a monoacylglycerol
with a fatty acid at position 2 is produced
2. Action of pancreatic esterases (A) and phospholipase A2 (B)
Absorption of Food Lipids

Digestion of proteins
The proteolytic enzymes, pepsin,
trypsin, chymotrypsin, elastase, and
the carboxypeptidases, are
produced as zymogens (the [pro]
and [ogen], in red, accompanying
the enzyme name) that are
activated by cleavage after they
enter the gastrointestinal lumen

Lieberman, 2009
Action of the digestive proteases
Pepsin, trypsin, chymotrypsin, and elastase
are endopeptidases; they hydrolyze peptide
bonds within chains. The others are
exopeptidases; aminopeptidases remove the
amino acid at the N-terminus and the
carboxypeptidases remove the amino acid at
the C-terminus. For each proteolytic enzyme,
the amino acid residues involved in the
peptide bond that is cleaved are listed beside
the R group to the right of the enzyme name.

Lieberman, 2009
Absorption of Peptides and Amino Acids
Sodium: active absorption in jejunum-ileum. Chloride follow by
electromagnetic attraction.

Potassium: passive secretion or absorption, depending on lumenal
concentration if diarrhea, hypokalemia due to loss of K+

HCO3-: secreted by pancreas, neutralizes H+ from stomach. Used as a
buffer

Calcium: need an active transport to cross the intestinal epithelium.
Absorption promoted by a derivative of Vitamin D

Iron: actively reabsorbed. Stored as ferritin

Water: two liters of fluids are taken as food or drink per day. In addition, 7
liters are used to secrete digestive juices need to reabsorb most of H2O.

H2O reabsorbed throughout the small and large intestines. Colon is
especially designed to reabsorb H2O.



Colonic bacteria produce some gases
such as: CO2, methane, hydrogen,
nitrogen, H2S
Lecithin will be decomposed into choline &
neurin


Some amino acids that will be decarboxylated in
putrefaction process:
Lysin Kadaverin
Arginine Agmatin.
Tyrosine Tyramin.
Ornithine Putressin.
Histidine Histamin.
These amino acids have strong vasomotor effect
Tryptopan Indol + Methyl Indol (Skatol) giving
specific scent to the faeces

Nitrogen diubah menjadi Amonia ke hati
sekresi portal shg pada penyakit sirosis
hepatik dan Ca.amonia meninggi dalam
darah perifer Toksik Koma Hepatik;
Zat Neomycin peroral bisa mengurangi
kadar amonia darah.

(Koolman, 2004)
(Koolman, 2004)
Bile acids and bile salts
Bile is an important product released by the
hepatocytes
It promotes the digestion of fats from food by
emulsifying them in the small intestine
The emulsifying components of bile, apart from
phospholipids, mainly consist of bile acids and
bile salts
The bile also contains free cholesterol, which is
excreted in this way
BILE
Heme Protein Cholesterol
Biliverdin, bilirubin
(Bile pigment)
Cholic acid,
chenodeoxycholic acid
(Bile acids)




(Koolman, 2004)

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Biochemistry, 2 ed. Mosby Elsevier, 2006
Lieberman, M., Marks, DA. Marks Basic Medical Biochemistry
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rd
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2009
Koolman, J.; Roehm, KH. Color Atlas of Biochemistry, 2 ed.
Thieme, 2004; 266-273; 306-315
Broom, I. Function of the Gastrointestinal Tract in Medical
Biochemistry (Baynes, J.W., Dominiczack, M.H., editors), 2
nd

ed. Elsevier, 2005.
Hopfer, U. Digestion and Absorption of Basic Nutritional
Constituents in Textbook of Biochemistry with Clinical
Correlations, Devlin, TM (editor), 6
th
ed. Wiley Liss, 200
Bender, D.A., Mayes, P.A. Nutrition, Digestion, and Absorption
in Harpers Ilustrated Biochemistry, Murray, RK., Granner, DK.,
Rodwell, VW(editors), 28
th
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