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Basically is in the brush border membranes of the intestinal mucosa. However, the digestion of starch occurs in stages and begins in the mouth. Saliva contains a-amylase, which randomly hydrolyses all the a(1 → 4) glucosidic bonds of starch except its outermost bonds and those next to branches. By the time thoroughly chewed food reaches the stomach, where the acidity inactivates a-amylase, the average chain length of starch has been reduced from several thousand to fewer than eight glucose units. Starch digestion continues in the small intestine under the influence of pancreatic a-amylase, which is similar to salivary enzyme. This enzyme degrades starch to a mixture of the disaccharide maltose, the trisaccharide maltotriose, and oligosaccharides. These oligosaccharides are hydrolyzed to their component monosaccharides by specific enzymes contained in the intestinal mucosa: an a-glucosidase, an a-dextrinase or debranching enzyme, and a sucrase (which in infants is replaced by a lactase).

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Chaz Stroman

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Which part of the body contains enzymes that break down starch molecules?

Saliva in the mouth contains the enzyme amylase, which helps break down starch molecules into simpler sugars like maltose.


Why do seeds need enzymes to convert starch for germination?

Seeds require enzymes to break down starch into simple sugars during germination because the plant embryo cannot use the larger starch molecules directly for energy. The enzymes help to convert starch into a form that the plant can easily use as a source of energy to support its initial growth until it can start photosynthesizing on its own.


What enzymes help break down starch into glucose?

The main enzymes that help break down starch into glucose are amylase enzymes. These enzymes can be found in the saliva and pancreatic secretions of humans and in various microorganisms. Amylase enzymes work by breaking the bonds between glucose units in the starch molecule, leading to the formation of simpler sugars like glucose.


Can humans break down starch effectively for digestion?

Yes, humans can break down starch effectively for digestion through the action of enzymes in the saliva and small intestine.


Why does a mixture of enzymes and starch kept in a water bath?

A mixture of enzymes and starch kept in a water bath allows the enzymes to work optimally at a specific temperature. Enzymes are sensitive to temperature and work best within a certain range, so the water bath helps maintain a constant temperature for the enzymes to efficiently break down the starch into simpler molecules.

Related Questions

What part of the body contains enzymes that break down into simple sugar?

The salivary glands of the mouth (oral cavity) contains salivary amylases that break down starch and glycogen.


Which part of the body contains enzymes that break down starch molecules?

Saliva in the mouth contains the enzyme amylase, which helps break down starch molecules into simpler sugars like maltose.


What substances does the enzymes in saliva change starch into?

it contains enzymes which break the starch down to sugar


What does starch end up as?

Starch is a polysaccharide ie. a very complex carbohydrate. Enzymes break it down into a di-saccharide - maltose. Another enzymes then converts this into the monosaccharide (simple sugar), glucose.


What happened to the starch solution after you have added saliva?

Saliva contains enzymes that break down starch into simpler sugars like maltose. After adding saliva to a starch solution, the amylase enzyme in saliva breaks down the starch molecules into these simpler sugars, leading to a sweet taste in the solution due to the presence of maltose.


Substance that contains a starch-splitting enzyme?

The substance that contains a starch-splitting enzyme is the pancreatic juice and saliva. The two types of enzymes that break down starch are pancreatic amylase and salivary amylase.


Do you need enzymes to break down starch?

Yes you do


What happens when enzymes are added to starch suspension?

Enzymes, such as amylase, break down starch molecules into simpler sugars like glucose. This process is called hydrolysis. The enzymes speed up the reaction, resulting in the starch suspension becoming thinner or turning into a clear solution as the starch is broken down.


Why do seeds need enzymes to convert starch for germination?

Seeds require enzymes to break down starch into simple sugars during germination because the plant embryo cannot use the larger starch molecules directly for energy. The enzymes help to convert starch into a form that the plant can easily use as a source of energy to support its initial growth until it can start photosynthesizing on its own.


What enzymes help break down starch into glucose?

The main enzymes that help break down starch into glucose are amylase enzymes. These enzymes can be found in the saliva and pancreatic secretions of humans and in various microorganisms. Amylase enzymes work by breaking the bonds between glucose units in the starch molecule, leading to the formation of simpler sugars like glucose.


What enzyme breaks starch down into sugar?

Bile and Amylase are the two enzymes that break down starch into sugars.


Why a solution of starch at room temperature does not readily decompose to form a solution of simple sugars?

Starch is a complex carbohydrate made up of long chains of glucose molecules, which needs enzymatic action to break down into simpler sugars. Room temperature alone is not sufficient to break down these complex chains into simple sugars. The process of starch decomposition into simple sugars requires specific enzymes such as amylase, which catalyze the hydrolysis of starch molecules.