Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
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.
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 proenzyme Pepsinogen, with the exposure to hydrochloric acid gets converted into the active enzyme pepsin, the proteolytic enzyme of the stomach. Hydrochloric acid (HCl) provides the acidic pH (pH 1.8) optimal for pepsins. Rennin is a proteolytic enzyme found in gastric juice of infants which helps in the digestion of milk proteins.
When the chyme is exhausted of its nutrients the remaining waste material changes into the semi-solids called feces, which pass to the large intestine, where bacteria in the gut flora further break down residual proteins and starches. [32] Transit time through the small intestine is an average of 4 hours.
Protein catabolism often begins with pepsin, which converts proteins into polypeptides. These polypeptides are then further degraded. In humans, the pancreatic proteases include trypsin, chymotrypsin, and other enzymes. In the intestine, the small peptides are broken down into amino acids that can be absorbed into the bloodstream.
The fundic glands (or oxyntic glands), are found in the fundus and body of the stomach. They are simple almost straight tubes, two or more of which open into a single duct. Oxyntic means acid-secreting and they secrete hydrochloric acid (HCl) and intrinsic factor. [7] The pyloric glands are located in the antrum of the pylorus.
Parts-per-million cube of relative abundance by mass of elements in an average adult human body down to 1 ppm. About 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of six elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. Only about 0.85% is composed of another five elements: potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine, and magnesium ...
Chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis may involve the release of lysosomal enzymes into extracellular space that break down surrounding tissues. Abnormal proteolysis may result in age-related neurological diseases such as Alzheimer 's due to the generation and ineffective removal of peptides that aggregate in cells.