Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

pancreatic juice

 
Dictionary: pancreatic juice
Home > Library > Literature & Language > Dictionary

n.
A clear alkaline secretion of the pancreas containing enzymes that aid in the digestion of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.


Search unanswered questions...

Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

Food and Nutrition: pancreatic juice
Top
Home > Library > Food & Cooking > Food and Nutrition

The alkaline digestive juice produced by the pancreas and secreted into the duodenum. It contains the inactive precursors of a number of protein digestive enzymes. Trypsinogen is activated to trypsin by enteropeptidase in the intestinal lumen; in turn, trypsin activates the other enzyme precursors: chymotrypsinogen to chymotrypsin, pro-elastase to elastase, procarboxypeptidase to carboxypeptidase. Also contains lipase, amylase, and nucleases.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: pancreatic juice
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Columbia Encyclopedia
pancreatic juice (păn'krēăt'ĭk, păng'-), secretions of the exocrine portion of the pancreas into the small intestine. The juice contains a number of important digestive enzymes, including trypsin, chymotrypsin, carboxypeptidase, lipase, and amylase. Pancreatic juice is alkaline in nature because of a high concentration of bicarbonate ions; this helps to neutralize the acidic gastric juice from the stomach. Secretion of pancreatic juice is stimulated by hormones of the duodenum, such as secretin and cholecystokinin, and by nervous impulses through the vagus nerve.

Wikipedia: Pancreatic juice
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Question book-new.svg
 This article does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2009)

Pancreatic juice is a liquid secreted by the pancreas, which contains a variety of enzymes, including trypsinogen, chymotrypsinogen, elastase, carboxypeptidase, pancreatic lipase, and amylase.

Pancreatic juice is alkaline in nature due to the high concentration of bicarbonate ions. This is useful in neutralizing the acidic gastric acid, allowing for effective enzymic action.

Pancreatic juice secretion is regulated by the hormones secretin and cholecystokinin, which is produced by the walls of the duodenum upon detection of acid food, proteins and fats. Pancreatic secretion consists of an aqueous bicarbonate component from the duct cells and enzymatic component from the acinar cells.

External links

v • d • e
Digestive system, physiology: gastrointestinal physiology
GI tract
Upper GI
Processes
Fluids
Lower GI
Border
Fluids
Processes
Either/both
Processes
Accessory
Fluids
Bile · Pancreatic juice
Processes
Abdominopelvic
digestive system navs: anat of tract,glands,perit,diaphragm/physio/dev, noncongen/congen/congen of d+w/neoplasia, symptoms+signs/eponymous, proc
This enzyme-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Food and Nutrition. A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2005 by A. E. Bender and D. A. Bender. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Pancreatic juice".  Read more