Spermatogenesis  Teeth mechanically break down food into small pieces.

Tongue
mixes food with saliva (contains amylase, which helps break down
 Occurs in the testes starch).
 Two divisions produce 4 spermatids  Epiglottis is a flap-like structure at the back of the throat that closes
 Spermatids mature into sperm over the trachea preventing food from entering it.
 Men produce about 250,000,000 sperm per day
Esophagus
Oogenesis
 Approximately 10” long
 Occurs in the ovaries Functions include:
 Two divisions produce 3 polar bodies that die and 1 egg  Moves food from the throat to the stomach using muscle
 Polar bodies die because of unequal division of cytoplasm movement called peristalsis
 Immature egg called oocyte  If acid from the stomach gets in here that’s heartburn.
 Starting at puberty, one oocyte matures into an ovum (egg) every
28 days Stomach

DIGESTION
 Digestion is the breakdown of large, complex organic molecules into
smaller components that can be used by the body.
 Molecules need to be small enough to diffuse across plasma
membranes
PROCESSES IN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
 Ingestion – this is the consumption of or taking in of nutrients.
 Digestion – breakdown of large organic molecules into smaller
components by enzymes.
 Absorption – the transport or delivery of digested nutrients to body
tissues.
 Egestion – the elimination of food waste materials from the body.
HUMAN DIGESTION
Mouth
 J-shaped muscular bag that stores the food you eat, breaks it down
into tiny pieces.
 Mixes food with digestive juices that contain enzymes to break
down proteins and lipids.
 Acid in the stomach kills bacteria.
 Food found in the stomach is called chyme.
Small Intestine
 Small intestines are roughly 7 meters long
 Lining of intestine walls has finger-like projections called villi, to
increase surface area.
 The villi are covered in microvilli which further increases surface
area for absorption.
 Nutrients from the food pass into the bloodstream through the
small intestine walls.
 Absorbs:

o 80% ingested water

 o Vitamins  Produces digestive enzymes to digest fats, carbohydrates and
proteins
o Minerals
 Regulates blood sugar by producing insulin
o Carbohydrates
RUMINANT
o Proteins
 Has four distinctive compartments in its stomach, which swallows
o Lipids its food essentially unchewed, regurgitates, and chews it thoroughly
and reswallows it again.
* Secretes digestive enzymes  Examples include cattle, sheep, goats, deer, rhinos, and elk.]

Large Intestine Rumination (regurgitation)

 About 5 feet long  Rumen, where it is processed mechanically and exposed to bacteria
 Accepts what small intestines don’t absorb than can break down cellulose.
 Rectum (short term storage which holds feces before it is expelled).  The Reticulum allows the animal to regurgitate & reprocess
 Functions particulate matter ("chew its cud").
 More finely-divided food is then passed to the Omasum, for further
o Bacterial digestion
mechanical processing
 Ferment carbohydrates  The mass is finally passed to the true stomach, the Abomassum,
where the digestive enzyme lysozyme breaks down the bacteria so
 Protein breakdown as to release nutrients
o Absorbs more water NON RUMINANT
o Concentrate wastes  Has a single compartment in its stomach, which swallows its food
Accessory Organs after chewing and does not regurgitate its food.
 Examples include pigs, humans, bears, and dogs.
 Not part of the path of food, but play a critical role.
Non Ruminant Digestion
 Include: Liver, gall bladder, and pancreas

Gall Bladder  food is swallowed directly into the single stomach compartment
 it is mixed with digestive juices
 Stores bile from the liver, releases it into the small intestine.
What do animals need to live?
 Fatty diets can cause gallstones
n Animals make energy using:
Pancreas
 – food Length of digestive system

– oxygen  Herbivores & omnivores

n Animals build bodies
using:
– food for raw materials
• amino acids, sugars,
fats, nucleotides
o long digestive systems
o harder to digest cellulose (cell walls)
o bacteria in intestines help
 Carnivores
o short digestive systems
o protein easier to
digest than cellulose

– ATP energy for synthesis

Different diets; different bodies FUN FACT

 Adaptations of herbivore vs. carnivore  HOW LONG ARE YOUR INTESTINES? At least 25 feet in an adult. Be
o Teeth glad you're not a full-grown horse -- their coiled-up intestines are 89
o length of digestive system feet long!
o number & size of stomachs  Food drying up and hanging out in the large intestine can last 18
hours to 2 days!
Teeth
 In your lifetime, your digestive system may handle about 50 tons!!
 Carnivore

o sharp ripping teeth

o “canines”

 Herbivore

o wide grinding teeth

o molars

 Omnivore

o both kinds of teeth