142 Alimentary System
Overview Structure of the Walls of the Digestive
General Structure and Functions
The main purpose of the alimentary system
is to ingest food, break it down mechanically
and enzymatically, and utilize its nutrients.
Food supplies the human body with energy,
mostly from proteins, fats, and carbohy-
Alimentary System
drates, as well as providing vital nutritional
supplements such as vitamins.
The human alimentary system can be
divided into two parts, based on its tasks.
The first part, consisting of the digestive
organs contained in the head, is concerned
with the ingestion and mechanical break-
down of food. In the second part, beginning
with the esophagus, enzymes transform
ingested food into nutrients, which are
chemically broken down and absorbed, and
wastes that are eliminated.
Mouth and pharynx (A). The initial part of
the alimentary canal consists of the oral cav-
ity (A1), along with the major and minor
salivary glands, and the middle and lower por-
tions of the pharynx (A2). In the first part of
the digestive tract, food is ingested and
broken down with the help of the lips (A3),
teeth (A4), and tongue (A5). Saliva lubricates
Copyright © 2014. Thieme Medical Publishers, Incorporated. All rights reserved.
the food bolus, which is then swallowed in
individual portions and transported into the
pharynx.
Digestive tract proper. The second part of
the alimentary system begins with the
esophagus (A6) and includes the remainder
of the alimentary canal, as well as the acces-
sory digestive organs consisting of the liver
(A7) and pancreas (A8). The esophagus
transports the bolus of food toward the
stomach (A9), where enzymatic breakdown
of food into nutrients begins. Digestion is
completed in the small intestine (A10), where
component nutrients are absorbed after
being further broken down by secretions re-
leased from numerous glands. The main
function of the large intestine (A11) is to ab-
sorb water and electrolytes from the intesti-
nal contents, which are transformed by fer-
mentation and decomposition into feces
and transported to the anus (A12).
Fritsch, H., & Kuehnel, W. (2014). Color atlas of human anatomy, vol. 2 : Internal organs. Thieme Medical Publishers, Incorporated.
Created from unam on 2022-09-15 06:02:32.
Organs
The alimentary system is basically a muscu-
lar tube lined with epithelium and adapted re-
gionally to the various functions of the
digestive organs. The greater part of the
epithelium-lined tube is derived from the
endoderm (see p. 326).
Mouth and pharynx. Each of the organs of
the initial part of the alimentary canal has a
different function and thus structure. The
tongue, for instance, is composed of striated
muscle lined by highly differentiated and
specialized epithelial cells. Also contained
in the oral cavity are the teeth, which are
composed of various hard tissues.
Organs of the digestive tract proper. Most
of the organs making up the digestive tract
proper are involved in absorption and have
structurally similar walls formed by several
layers (B), consisting of a mucosa (B13), sub-
mucosa (B14), muscular layer (B15), serosa,
and subserosa or adventitia (B16). The mu-
cosa is composed of three layers: an
epithelial lining, which varies regionally and
is characteristic for each segment; a layer of
connective tissue (lamina propria); and a
muscular layer (muscularis mucosae). The
submucosa consists of a layer of underlying
connective tissue. The muscular layer con-
tains two layers of smooth muscle, a circular
layer and a longitudinal layer. On its outer
surface, the intestinal canal is either
covered by peritoneal serosa or embedded in
the surrounding structures by the adventitia.
The entire intestinal canal is innervated
by the autonomic nervous system. The intrinsic,
or enteric, nervous system consists of in-
tramural plexuses, that is, the submucous
plexus (Meissner plexus) of the submucosa,
and the myenteric plexus (Auerbach plexus)
(see Vol. 3, p. 300) between the layers of the
muscular coat. The intramural plexuses are
directly connected to the extrinsic (auto-
nomic) nervous system located outside of
the gut tube.
 General Structure and Functions of the Alimentary System 143

16 13 14 15

3
4 5

Alimentary System
2

B Wall structure
of digestive tract
proper

9
7
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11

10
11

11

A Organs of
alimentary system

12

Fritsch, H., & Kuehnel, W. (2014). Color atlas of human anatomy, vol. 2 : Internal organs. Thieme Medical Publishers, Incorporated.
Created from unam on 2022-09-15 06:02:32.