GI and digestion terms to memorize

Cephalic phase	The first phase of digestion, when the sight and smell of food causes your brain to turn on the parasympathetic system and start your salivary glands and stomach working.
Amylase	A starch-digesting enzyme produced in the saliva (salivary amylase) and the pancreas (pancreatic amylase)
HCl	Hydrocholoric acid, secreted by the stomach
Pepsinogen	The inactive form of pepsin, a protein-digesting enzyme produced by the stomach. It is activated by interaction with the HCl in the stomach
Pepsin	A protein-digesting enzyme produced by the stomach
Intrinsic factor	A compound produced in the stomach which allows you to absorb Vitamin B12
Mucus	Produced to coat the stomach lining and protect it
Gastric phase of digestion	The second phase, beginning when you eat and food reaches the stomach. The stomach secretes GASTRIN. This phase lasts until the stomach contents enter the duodenum.
Gastrin	A hormone that makes the stomach get more excited and secrete more digestive enzymes and HCl. This is an example of positive feedback.
Chyme	This is the stomach contents. It’s a mix of ground-up and partly digested food, HCl, and pepsin.
Intestinal Phase of digestion	This begins when the duodenum receives chyme from the stomach. The duodenal cells detect HCl, fats, and amino acids and begin to secrete SECRETIN and CHOLECYSTOKININ. They also secrete GASTRIC INHIBITORY PEPTIDE which turns off the stomach.
Secretin	A hormone secreted by the duodenum. It goes into the blood and is carried to the pancreas, where it causes the pancreas to release bicarbonate (HCO3-) ions. These ions go to the duodenum and neutralize the HCl that just entered it from the stomach.
Cholecystokinin (CCK)	Means ‘gall bladder activator’. Causes the pancreas to secrete digestive enzymes and makes the gall bladder contract and shoot bile into the duodenum.
Bile	A compound made out of cholesterol and bilirubin. It emulsifies fats so you can digest them.
Trypsin	A strong protein-digesting enzyme produced by the pancreas
Lipase	Fat-digesting enzyme produced by the pancreas
Brush border enzymes	Enzymes attached to the surface of small intestine epithelial cells, where they can break food molecules apart
Emulsification	Mixing fats and water together so the fats stay suspended in the water, instead of coming together into big lumps.
Exocrine pancreas	The part of the pancreas that produces digestive enzymes and bicarbonate and sends them out to the duodenum through the pancreatic duct
Endocrine pancreas	The part of the pancreas that produces insulin and glucagon and releases them into the blood
Islets of Langerhans or pancreatic islets	The clusters of cells that make up the endocrine pancreas
Pancreatic Alpha cells or A cells	The cells that make glucagon
Pancreatic Beta cells or B cells	The cells that make insulin. Always say PANCREATIC B cells, because there’s a whole different set of B cells in the immune system!
Hepatic portal vein	Takes the blood from your GI tract to the liver to be filtered before it is sent to the rest of your body
Hepatic sinusoids	The capillaries that take the blood through your liver. These get blocked in liver cirrhosis.
Hepatocytes	The liver cells that live along the sinusoids, filtering toxins and excess food out of the blood.
Hepatopancreatic ampulla or ampulla of Vater	The little nozzle that lets bile and pancreatic secretions empty into your duodenum.
Sphincter of Oddi	The little sphincter that opens or closes the hepatopancreatic ampulla