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Pepsin / ˈ p ɛ p s ɪ n / is an endopeptidase that breaks down proteins into smaller peptides and amino acids. It is one of the main digestive enzymes in the digestive systems of humans and many other animals, where it helps digest the proteins in food. Pepsin is an aspartic protease, using a catalytic aspartate in its active site. [2]
Pepsin is the main gastric enzyme. It is produced in the stomach by gastric chief cells in its inactive form pepsinogen, which is a zymogen. Pepsinogen is then activated by the stomach acid into its active form, pepsin. Pepsin breaks down the protein in the food into smaller particles, such as peptide fragments and amino acids.
The stomach is also called the gaster (Greek belly) ... (this is a precursor to pepsin- the highly acidic environment converts the pepsinogen to pepsin), ...
Gastric acid or stomach acid is the acidic component – hydrochloric acid of gastric juice, produced by parietal cells in the gastric glands of the stomach lining. In humans, the pH is between one and three, much lower than most other animals, but is very similar to that of carrion eating carnivores , needing protection from ingesting pathogens .
A prime example of this is pepsin, which is secreted in the stomach by chief cells. Pepsin in its secreted form is inactive . However, once it reaches the gastric lumen it becomes activated into pepsin by the high H+ concentration, becoming an enzyme vital to digestion. The release of the enzymes is regulated by neural, hormonal, or paracrine ...
The gastric mucosa is covered in surface mucous cells that produce the mucus necessary to protect the stomach's epithelial lining from gastric acid secreted by parietal cells in the glands, and from pepsin, a secreted digestive enzyme. Surface mucous cells follow the indentations and partly line the gastric pits.
The gastric hydrogen potassium ATPase or H + /K + ATPase is the proton pump of the stomach.It exchanges potassium from the intestinal lumen with cytoplasmic hydronium [2] and is the enzyme primarily responsible for the acidification of the stomach contents and the activation of the digestive enzyme pepsin [3] (see gastric acid).
Gastric pit cells are replaced every 2–4 days. This high rate of turnover is a protective mechanism designed to protect the epithelial lining of the stomach from both the proteolytic action of pepsin and the acid produced by parietal cells. [8]