Bchintermediate
Describe the key steps from dietary starch digestion to absorption of glucose.
Answer
Salivary amylase begins starch digestion in the mouth. Pancreatic alpha-amylase continues digestion in the small intestine, producing oligosaccharides and disaccharides. Intestinal enzymes such as maltase complete hydrolysis to glucose. Glucose is absorbed in the jejunum by sodium-linked active transport and enters portal blood.
Explanation
### What a good answer covers
- Salivary amylase starts starch digestion in the mouth.
- Acidic stomach contents stop this amylase activity.
- Pancreatic alpha-amylase acts in the small intestine and produces shorter carbohydrate fragments.
- Intestinal enzymes complete digestion, and glucose is absorbed into portal blood from the jejunum.
### Terms
- **Amylase**: An enzyme that hydrolyzes starch-like carbohydrate chains.
- **Jejunum**: The middle part of the small intestine where much absorption occurs.
- **Portal blood**: Blood carrying absorbed nutrients from the intestine toward the liver.
### Remember
Digest polymers first, then absorb monosaccharides.
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