what role does the pancreas play in the digestive system?
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In addition to digestive enzymes produced by acinar cells and insulin/glucagon produced by islet cells already mentioned above, the pancreas also produces bicarbonate in order to neutralize stomach acid as chyme enters the duodenum.
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--check out a map of the pancreas.
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In humans, digestion begins in the mouth where food is chewed with the teeth. The process stimulates exocrine glands in the mouth to release digestive enzymes such as salivary amylase, which aid in the breakdown of food, particularly carbohydrates. Chewing also causes the release of saliva, which helps condense food into a bolus that can be easily passed through the esophagus. The esophagus is about 20 centimeters long. The food is pushed down by a movement called peristalsis, which is the wave-like contraction of smooth muscle tissue characteristic of the digestive system.\nThe food enters the stomach upon passage through the cardiac sphincter. In the stomach, food is churned and thoroughly mixed with a digestive fluid, composed chiefly of hydrochloric acid, and other digestive enzymes to further decompose it chemically for a few hours. As the acidic level changes in the stomach and later parts of the digestive tract, more enzymes are activated or deactivated to extract and process various nutrients.\nAfter being processed in the stomach, food is passed to the small intestine via peristalsis. It passes through the pyloric sphincter and enters the first 10 inches of the small intestine, the duodenum, where it is further mixed with 3 different liquids, which are bile (which helps aid in fat digestion), pancreatic juice (made by the pancreas), and intestinal juice. They also add several enzymes: maltase, lactase and sucrase, to process sugars. (Bile also contains pigments that are by-products of red blood cell destruction in the liver; these bile pigments are eliminated from the body with the feces.) Most nutrient absorption takes place in the small intestine. The nutrients pass through the small intestine's wall, containing small, finger-like structures called villi. The blood, which has absorbed nutrients, is carried away from the small intestine via the hepatic portal vein and goes to the liver for filtering, removal of toxins, and nutrient processing.\nAfter going through the small intestine, the food then goes to the large intestine. The large intestine has 3 parts: the cecum (or pouch that forms the T-junction with the small intestine), the colon, and the rectum. In the large intestine, water is reabsorbed, and the foods that cannot go thorugh the villi such as fiber, can be stored in large intestine. Fiber helps to keep the food moving through the G.I. tract. The food that cannot be broken down is called feces. Feces is stored in the rectum until it is expelled through the anus.\n\n\nIt's long I know, but it's fairly simple words.
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the pancreas stops producing insulin which is necessary to get the sugar in the blood stream into the cells where it can be used.  Thus the liver starts to break down the bodies fat and do gluconeogenesis.
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Villi line most of the small intestine, increasing the absorptive surface for digested material; insulin is created by the endocrine pancreas (specifically the Islets of Langerhans).
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The Pancreas is pretty darned important.  Without a properly functioning pancreas you get diabetes.\n\nThe pancreas is an organ in the digestive and endocrine system that serves two major functions: exocrine (producing pancreatic juice containing digestive enzymes) and endocrine (producing several important hormones, including insulin)
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im studying the digestive system right now, so i'll have a go at this question (u may want to chec accuracy).\nthe cell gets the carbon it needs via the blood supply. when we eat, all the nutrients are broken down and molecules such as hydrogen, oxygen and carbon are filtered into the blood stream so that they can be passed on to all the cells in th body.\n\ndoes that help?
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yes. the pancreas is an important organ. get with your doctors about the best course of action.
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Yes you can. Both the endocrine and exocrine functions of the pancreas can be replaced. The exocrine function can be replaced with dehydrated bovine and swine pancreas collected from slaughter houses, the supplement would digest your food for you!
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In anatomy of the digestive system, the colon or large intestine is the part of the intestine from the cecum to the rectum. Its primary purpose is to extract water from feces. In mammals, it consists of the ascending colon on the right side, the transverse colon, the descending colon on the left side, the sigmoid colon, and the rectum.
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The gastrointestinal tract or digestive tract, also referred to as the GI tract or the alimentary canal or the gut, is the system of organs within multicellular animals which takes in food, digests it to extract energy and nutrients, and expels the remaining waste.\n\nThe GI tract differs substantially from animal to animal. For instance, some animals have multi-chambered stomachs.
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This is a good question, but let's define "important" as "necessary for organismal survival".  In this case, both are EQUALLY important.  The endocrine function of the pancreas is to secrete insulin and glucagon which help to lower and raise the blood sugar levels, respectively.  Blood sugar level homeostasis is necessary for human survival.  On the other hand, the exocrine pancreas secretes trypsinogen, chymotrypsinogen, carboxypeptidase, pancreatic lipase, pancreatic amylase, and other substances which aid in the digestion of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.  Obviously, this is a function which is also necessary to human survival.  You simply can not live with only one of these pancreatic functions operational and so it appears that neither function takes precedence over the other.  Again, very thoughtful and insightful question!
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The small intestine is about 6 meters (20 feet) long. It is coiled in the center of the abdominal cavity (see picture). The small intestine is divided into 3 sections: upper, jejunum, and ileum. The lining of the small intestine secretes a hormone called secretin, which stimulates the pancreas to produce digestive enzymes.
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Gall Bladder or Pancreatitis (pancreas inflamation).  Both of these organs secrete bile into the intestines to aid in digestion.  The ducts can get blocked or infected, causing bile to build up in the organd (not good), or the organs can themselves be infected (very bad).  Go to a doctor, for upper GI, and they can help you a lot.  Many people have to have the gall bladder removed, but it doesn't affect you too much.
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in layman's terms:  the pancreas produces insulin (among other functions), the insulin helps the body break down sugars so they can be used for energy.  With no insulin to break down sugar, the body has to break down fats and proteins for energy.  That means the sugars stay in the bloodstream causing high blood sugar.  That can lead to a whole bunch of problems.
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Pancreatic juice contains three digestive enzymes: tryptase, amylase, and lipase, that, along with intestinal enzymes, complete the digestion of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, respectively.
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The gall bladder is a balloon-like sac that connects to the liver and the top of the small intestines. It stores bile, a green substance produced by the liver. Bile assists in the digestion of fats.