THE PANCREAS – GENERAL INFORMATION
The pancreas secretes only about one-fifth of the amount of juice produced by the much smaller salivary glands, yet its secretion is much more concentrated and important. As many as four enzymes are secreted into the small intestine immediately adjacent to the bile duct. One of these enzymes, rennin, is also produced in the stomach. It turns milk into curds, a job that is mainly done by the stomach. When the stomach fails to function effectively the pancreas has a marvellous capacity to take on part of the stomach’s work load, since it can produce rennin just as efficiently as the stomach. Diastase, or amylase, changes starches into sugars, such as glycogen, dextrin and maltose. Trypsin, like pepsin, breaks down proteins into peptones and finally into the basic building blocks of protein, amino acids. The fourth enzyme, lipase, together with the bile, hydrolises fats into fatty acids and glycerol. In fact, the body cannot break down, digest and assimilate proteins, starches and fats without the enzymes secreted by the pancreas.
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