Essays on Digestive System

Mary Roach’s book Gulp (Adventures on the alimentary canal) presents a series of adventures in gastroenterological studies. It is an investigation of our digestive system right from the mouth to the anus. It is simply an exploration to the human digestive system. The book gives an in depth analysis from the time we smell food, taste food, swallow, digest and finally excrete the undigested food material. Roach writes about the alimentary canal, which is a long tube from the mouth to the rear, in a way that makes science such an interesting topic. Where many people have seen Continue reading...

A time has come whereby, I as the video reporter will embark on an exciting voyage piloting a mini sub in the process of miniaturization. In this journey, I and my sub are 8 microns long. This man hungrily sips the beer swallowing me and my associates. In this trip, I am tasked to describe the process of digestion of the consumed carbohydrates, proteins and fats. When we reach the distal ileum, we will enter the blood stream via the mucosal membrane through the superior Mesenteric vein. After getting into the blood stream, we will proceed with our journey Continue reading...

The effects of acid reflux on the equilibrium (homeostasis) of the human digestive system vary according to the extent the disease attacks the esophagus. Located in the upper digestive tract of the body, the esophagus tube carries ingested food and liquids from the mouth to the stomach (nih.gov 2013). The physiological effects of acid reflux disease on the digestive system affect its homeostasis by irritating the esophagus causing different symptoms.
When acid reflux disease (GERD) occurs the muscle at the end of the esophagus fails to close properly allowing leakage of the contents of the stomach backing up into Continue reading...

Colorectal cancer, which is also commonly known as colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in the US. According to statistics retrieved from the centers for disease control, approximately 100,000 new cases of colon cancer are detected every year. The incidence of colon cancer is observed more commonly in patients that belong to higher socioeconomic background. Furthermore, colon cancer is most commonly detected in patients who are 50 years or older (CDC.gov). It was observed that approximately 49000 deaths occur annually on account of colon cancer. The death rate for colon cancer has been Continue reading...

(Author)

Abstract

Colon is the part of the large intestine and its cancer is one of the important problems of modern society. Several factors can result in the development of colonic cancer. These factors may include non-modifiable types of risk factors as for example growing age, gender, race or ethnicity, and hereditary factors, and modifiable types of risk factors as for example obesity, poor diets, tobacco use, alcohol intake, reduced physical activity and sedentary life. Sedentary behavior is an important risk factor for modern life. It can result in obesity, insulin problems, and diabetes, which are found to be involved Continue reading...

The classroom is a seventh grade Life Sciences class. The school is located in an urban area and is considered a Title I school due the high percentage of students on free and reduced lunch. There are 22 students in the class, of which 2 are special education inclusion students and 3 English Language Learners at different levels of English proficiency. The subtopic for the Life Science class is the function of organ systems in the human body specifically the digestive system.
Objective 1: In a teacher guided dialog on with a visual of the digestive system, students will Continue reading...

The Digestive Tract

Part I: Parts of the Digestive Tract/System
Part II
Section A
The Mouth
The digestive tract starts at the mouth. This is the first step of digestion. When one takes the first bite, food begins the digestion process through chewing. Chewing breaks down the food into more soluble pieces. This also increases the surface area for which the digestive enzymes can work on the food in the latter stages of the digestion process.

Oesophagus

The oesophagus is located in the throat near the windpipe (trachea). This is the second stage of the digestion process. This part receives food from the Continue reading...

1. Diagnosis of the disease and justification (1 paragraph)
The patient is suffering from constipation. Constipation mostly refers to having bowel movement less than three times per week. Constipation is usually accompanied by hard stools or passing of the stool is difficult. Furthermore, the patient suffering from constipation is experiencing pain while passing stools or he/she may not be able to have a bowel movement after straining for more than 10 minutes. The symptoms of constipation may also be, as a result, of the condition of the feces that changes from the normal or usual feces. Constipation is, therefore, Continue reading...

Digestion occurs in the gastrointestinal system, which is composed of the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) and the associated accessory organs.The process of digestion occurs through six steps, namely ingestion, secretion, mixing,digestion, absorption and defecation. (Tortora&Derrickson, 2008).

Anatomy of the digestive system

The GI tract or the alimentary canal is a long winding tube that measures approximately 30 feet (9 meters) in length. The mouth, esophagus, pharynx, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and the anus make up the GI tract.The salivary glands, tongue, teeth, gallbladder, pancreas and the liver make up the associated accessory organs (Tortora&Derrickson, 2008).
The mouth. The mouth starts with the Continue reading...

Waste Management

Introduction
Dealing with waste has become an increasing concern nowadays, since it affects people’s life quality by impacting the health, it affects the aesthetics, it jeopardizes the ecosystems and in general, it negatively impacts the environmental sustainability. Domestic waste (generated by individuals) and commercial and industrial waste represent a quotidian aspect that authorities are aiming to handle, either through applying laws and guidelines for maintaining healthy and clean cities and villages, either by applying various technologies for actually managing the waste disposals. And the processes and technologies used to manage the various types of waste differ depending on Continue reading...

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic disease that refers to both the Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. These two conditions are variants of IBD that often share some pathophysiological similarities and differences. The incidence of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis may be influenced by familial or hereditary predisposition (Brant, 2007) that may be relevant in the case of the 38-year old male patient suffering from ulcerative colitis and whose aunt was previously diagnosed with a Crohn’s disease. According to Baumgart (2012), a heritability studies of IBD revealed a prominent genetic component. This hereditary disposition is Continue reading...

Exercise 1

- The columnar epithelium from the stomach resembles the columnar epithelium from the duodenum in many aspects. The columnar nature of the epithelium in both instances serves for increased protection of the underlying organs and organelles. The simple columnar epithelia found in the stomach and duodenum also contains the largest cytoplasmic volumes in comparison to all the other epithelia, housing organelle density and energy reserves suitable in the engagement of the most complex of secretory and absorption functions. The duodenum epithelia however, posses an extra microvillus which aids in increasing the surface area for absorption. The epithelia in the Continue reading...

Introduction

The discovery of restriction enzymes (REs), bacterial transformation, and agarose gel electrophoresis caused the sudden increase of popularity of molecular biology in the 1970s. Restriction enzymes allow the manipulation of specific sites of an organism’s genes and are commonly used in many laboratories worldwide. Restriction enzymes cut DNA in many different ways and can produce sticky ends and blunt ends (Weaver, 2012). The most abundant type of restriction enzymes is Type II, which require magnesium cations as cofactor (Pingoud et al., 2005). Aside from their popularity is recombinant DNA technology as a “cut and paste” tool, estriction enzymes Continue reading...

(Author)

Abstract

Diabetes is a disease in which glucose levels are elevated to a huge amount in the body. More than 25 million people having 20 years of age and more than 20 years in the U.S. are found to have diabetes that is three times more than the number of patients in 1980. Scientists have found that diabetes can result in increased chances of developing colonic cancer equally in men and women (Sun & Kashyap, 2011). Different mechanisms such as hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance, central adiposity, increased growth factors, hyperglycemia, and several luminal factors have been proposed that are involved in Continue reading...

Introduction

In this paper, the pathopyiology of syncope is discussed with emphasis on Mr. Peter’s medical history and factors that could have contributed to his syncope. Further, the paper discusses the colonoscopy and its findings, his right hemi colectomy and the complications arising from his fall.

Pathopysiology of Syncope

Syncope is the transient loss of memory that occurs when cerebral blood flow falls to below half the normal value resulting in a brief period of inadequate oxygen, glucose and other nutrients supply to the brain tissues (Hainsworth, 2004). Syncope occurs rapidly, lasts for a short duration and the patient almost always recovers Continue reading...

It is better to prevent colon cancer rather than treating the disease after its occurrence. The implementation of various healthy lifestyle choices effectively prevents the occurrence of colon cancer. Modifying dietary habits plays a major role in the prevention of colon cancer as dietary supplementation is one of the most significant preventive factors . Consuming a balanced diet rich in healthy fruits and vegetables is a healthy behavioral choice. Vitamin D and antioxidants act as a protective layer on the mucosal cells and prevents colon cancer. Vitamin C and E also play an equally important role in the prevention of Continue reading...

ABSTRACT

Human beings deal with the reality of a world with a plethora of conditions, illnesses and diseases that threaten the health and livelihood of the population on a day-to-say basis. One such persistent disease that many Americans, both young and old, are suffering from is Crohn’s Disease. Crohn’s disease is commonly diagnosed on a regular basis all across the United States, however the reality is that medical realm does not specifically known what causes Crohn’s disease or why it has become so prevalent; some believe it is a combination of immune system deficiencies, genetic predisposition and Continue reading...

The paper being discussed today, includes the disease Celiac disease and the laboratory department the sample is tested in.

Pathology Department
The pathology department is a laboratory where tests are performed on clinical specimen of a person like blood, urine, stools, sputum etc in order to study the health condition of the patient. In other words, it studies the etiology of a disease. The hematology department is a subcategory of pathology that focuses on the study of blood and the disease causing pathogens in the blood.

Hematology testing

The lavender vacuum tubes are used for complete blood counts. The additive for the tube is EDTA. Special requirements for the tubes are 1 ml of pure blood left at room temperature Continue reading...

Lab partners

The transformation of bacterial cells using Puc18 plasmid as a vector
Abstract
In molecular cloning experiments, the DNA to be cloned is obtained from an organism and then broken into smaller fragments through digestion with restriction enzymes. The fragments of restriction enzyme digestion are then ligated /combined with some vector DNA to produce recombinant DNA molecules. These recombinant DNA molecules are then introduced into a host organism. When the host organism replicates, the recombinant molecule is replicated together with it. With time, large populations of transformed cells or clones are generated expressing the genotype and phenotype of the inserted Continue reading...

A Journey through the Digestive, Circulatory and Urinary Systems

My Fantastic Voyage: A Journey through the Digestive, Circulatory and Urinary Systems
My journey begins with the ingestion of a cheeseburger, fries, and root beer by a 55 year old man. I begin my trip in the gastrointestinal tract. While in the mouth, the food is masticated by the teeth and combined with saliva to moisten the bolus and begin digestion. Salivary amylase begins the breakdown of starches into smaller sugars and salivary lipase begins breaking down the fats (“Saliva,” 2013). We are then swallowed and peristalsis moves us down the esophagus towards the stomach (University of Leicester, 2001).
Continue reading...

Abstract:

A number of cancer studies have maintained that the various cancer rates within successive generations and mortality shifts for purposes of explaining the prevailing prevalence rates in the country that the variations of the most kinds of cancers are largely reflective of the differences around various environmental and behavioral risk factors. This will include aspects of lifestyle and culture as well as genetic differences. In general, behavioral characteristics that will be as influential include elements of reproductive, dietary patterns, and smoking behaviors, which are known to be major risk factors causing cancer in America as well as other infectious Continue reading...

A patient Mr. Johan is admitted in a hospital. His major problem is pancreatitis. He is in severe form of pancreatitis. We have to manage his electrolyte imbalance, and there is a need to look after the food and electrolyte effect of the patient.

Introduction:

In Pancreatitis, there is a disturbance in enzymatic secretion of pancreas. Usually trypsin that is used in digestion of food these are actuated in the pancreas. In normal condition, trypsin is activated in the small intestine; it acts as a central role in digestion of nutrient. When it is triggered in the pancreas, it causes Continue reading...

EWB Challenge 2014Plan Timor Leste

Sustainable Engineering Practice
South Australian Institute of Business and Technology
Executive Summary
This report provides details on the project that aims at facilitating for the creation of an anaerobic/biogas digester in in Codo town. This is a small town that is situated at Lautern District in East Timor, and it has a population of approximately 500 people. This town lacks a system that can allow them to dispose and manage their waste in an effective manner. They bury their waste underground, and they use burning wood to serve as a means of cooking. The report will suggest various ways Continue reading...

Crohn’s disease overview

Crohn’s disease (also called ileitis or enteritis) is a chronic, relapsing–remitting, non-infectious form of bowel disorder that mainly causes inflammation of the digestive tract, and is the general term for diseases that cause swelling in the intestines.
This term has replaced older terms that include regional or terminal ileitis and granulomatous colitis; it doesn’t just imply any cause, site, or pathological response. The terminal ileum and the right colon are two sites that are most vulnerable, a close to this pathological disability can negatively influence multiple parts of the body, but this negative effect is connected Continue reading...

This paper serves as a compilation of several assignments undertaken pertaining to health assessment. The essay begins with a brief description of this student’s home county and follows this with the lengthy explanation about the primary health concerns of the elderly in Dupage County. Models on health assessments are discussed as well as the strategies to gather data for the health assessment.

Demographic information from US Census

Dupage, Illinois has a population of 22,241. Of this figure, there are 18,104 Whites or 81 percent of the population. Asians comprise 11 percent or 2,647 persons. The elderly population has a large Continue reading...

Question 1

a)
i) If genomic DNA from the wild type bacterium were digested with EcoRI, three different fragments would be detected. The approximate sizes of the fragments would be 1.625 Kb, 1.375 Kb and 0.25 Kb. This is because there are two different digestion sites for EcoRI within the region complementary to the probe, and therefore three different fragments would partially hybridize with it after the digestion.
ii) There are only two restriction sites for BamHI shown in the diagram, but neither of them is within the region complementary to the probe, and both of them are upstream of this Continue reading...

Introduction

Composition of Dietary Fiber
Dietary fiber is an essential component in nutrition and health (Mora et al., 2013; Klosterbuer, Roughead, & Slavin, 2011). Thus, the present study will explore the effect of particle size and source of fiber on the level of cholesterol in the human digestion system. Primarily, dietary fiber is a constituent of plant foods and includes materials that have diverse morphological and chemical structure. Such materials resist enzymatic action in the human digestion system (Dhingra et al. 2012). In the gastrointestinal tracts, the dietary fiber forms a matrix that has both amorphous and fibrous characteristics. The matrix’ Continue reading...

Fantastic Voyage - II

It is Day 1 and I am in a mini sub, all set to travel across the wonders of the human body, as the said body ingests junk food that we eat daily. I expect this video and my report will demonstrate the effects of such food inside our body, since on the outside we are blissfully unaware about these possibly harmful. We shall see.
Now let me get into the details. This is your name from “Fantastic Voyage”, reporting from a mini submarine that is 8 microns long, and today I will show you the complex innards of Continue reading...

The esophagus is simply a tube that transports food to the stomach after being swallowed from the mouth (Cleveland Clinic, 1). Swallowing ensures that epiglottis in the throat is closed hence the food moves down the esophagus, preventing it from moving down through windpipe to the lungs. The contraction and relaxation of the muscles within the esophagus enables the food to move down hence this serves as its anatomical adaptation. This paper traces the pathway of food from the esophagus to the stomach, indicating the anatomical adaptations of each organ involved (Cleveland Clinic, 1).

The Stomach

This is the initial stopping Continue reading...

Abstract

Plasmodium falciparum is the parasite responsible for the deadly disease, malaria. The parasite is transmitted through the injection of sporozoites into the human blood stream. These sporozoites are transported in the blood stream to the liver. The sporozoites invade the hepatocytes and differentiate into merozoites. The merozoites invade the RBCs of the host; starting the blood stage of infection. The trophozoite stage ingests and degrades approximately 80% of the hemoglobin in the host cell. The hemoglobin is broken down into peptides due to enzymatic action by a metalloprotease and cysteine and aspartic proteases. Haematin is first released as a Continue reading...

The Interdependency of the Digestive System, Respiratory System, and Cardiovascular Systems

In the supply, of nutrients and the removal of waste products in the human system, four organ system are involved; the digestive system, the circulatory system, respiratory system and excretory system. The digestive system comprises of the mouth, stomach, small intestine and the liver.

The digestion of the carbohydrate begins in the mouth. The predominant carbohydrate is the starch. In the mouth, enzyme salivary amylase hydrolyses the starch to disaccharides and trisaccharide. The remaining starch from the Continue reading...

Crohn's Disease (CD): A Historical Background

Crohn’s disease is a persistent inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may impact any part of the gastrointestinal path, however, normally impacts the ileum (Yamada, 2009). It usually occurs to individuals of age 21 or under (Wilson et al., 2010). The CD may affect the quality of life (Baumgart & Sandborn, 2007; Morrison et al., 2009). It may need surgery (Pihl-Lesnovska et al., 2010).
There is a steady global rise in the occurrence of Crohn’s Disease and it represents an increased hospitalization (Gibson, 2009; Morrison et al., 2009; Wilson et al., 2010). In 2009, the CD cases in Australia Continue reading...

Introduction

This analysis will focus on the excess intake of saturated fats and cardiovascular disease. The analysis is based on the report detailing my nutrient intake recorded for two days starting from September 4, 2014 to September 6, 2014. According to the analysis, my diet during the two-day period predisposes me to cardiovascular disease since it is high in saturated fats. According to the food guidelines given by USDA, saturated fats should contribute less than 10 percent of the total daily calories. However, my nutrient report indicates that saturated fats contribute 12 percent of my total daily calorie intake. Consequently, Continue reading...

Overconsumption of Sucrose and Fructose may contribute to certain types of Cancer
1. Introduction
Though it is hard to establish, the link between cancer and glucose does exist. This is especially disturbing given the fact that the link between diabetes and glucose has been of particular interest to the science community for the past three decades. The bottom line is that most of the problematic cum chronic illnesses in the world today are to a large extent lifestyle diseases. In fact, research has advanced to the extent that the link between strains of diabetes and those of cancer can Continue reading...

Digestion is the mechanical and chemical break down of large food particles to smaller molecules that can be taken up into the blood (Winfred, 2005). The breakdown of large food starts in the mouth, through chewing, and goes all the way to the anus. The presence of saliva in the mouth that contains saliva amylase helps mechanical breakdown of food into bolus. The bolus then enters the stomach through the esophagus by a wavelike movement called peristalsis to the stomach. The churning of food and mixing of food begins in the stomach where both hydrochloric acid and gastric juice Continue reading...

Prognostic Cancer Biomarkers

The genetic diversity associated with cancer cells are shocking huge; and identifying a suitable prognostic marker is a real challenge. Prognostic cancer markers aims to evaluate objectively a patient’s overall outcome, response to treatment and chances of cancer recurrence. Prognostic markers can also help to select patients for a particular treatments and help predict the beneficial effect of the therapy. DNA, RNA, epigenetic patterns, signaling pathways, proteins, and metabolic biomolecules have been used as prognostic cancer markers. (Mehta et al., 2010)

Given below are few prognostic biomarkers commonly used in cancer medicine:

1. Beta tubulin: Beta tubulin regulates microtubule assembly in the cell. Class III tubulin are expressed by Continue reading...

Canine Micro Biomes Affected by their Diet

Canines Micro Biomes Affected by their Diet
Abstract
Dogs and other cats alike suffer from similar maladies faced by humans. The similarity in the maladies between the two groups of organisms stems from the ability to suffer infections from microbiomes of the gut. However, most of the research and knowledge on canine microbiome is not comprehensive to enable the deduction of accurate and precise conclusions. Recently, the molecular studies conducted on the cat family indicated that there are complex microbiomes in the gastrointestinal tract of then organism. The family of microbiomes includes archaeal, fungal, bacterial, and viral groups that Continue reading...

Celiac Disease

Introduction
This is an autoimmune disease of the gastrointestinal tract. It is also known as celiac sprue, although this name is of less use unlike before. The term sprue simply represent a descriptive term in Dutch and it was used then as a term to describe a disease state characterized by diarrhea, emaciation, apthous stomatitis, and mal-absorption (Cited in Green & Cellier, 2007). Different components has been reported or implicated in the development of the condition. Important predisposing features are the diet, immune response, genetics and environmental factors. The genetic factor contributes in a minor population although there are several Continue reading...

Introduction

The medical field of plastic surgery is growing in popularity among people. Statistics have shown that the rate of awareness and plastic surgeries that have conducted has actually doubled in size and number. It has been found that within 1996 and 2000, the number of cosmetics surgeries that have been conduction has doubled from about one million to three million in the United States (Loftus, Jean) while between the year 2000 and 2008, the rate as actually double again making the procedure one of the fastest medical procedures in the U.S (Loftus, Jean). The rate is being speculated to Continue reading...

Criminal Law

Abstract
This paper will provide a personal response on capital punishment and its relationship for deterring crime. At the same time, there will also be a discussion on the ethical issues concerning the imposition of death penalty in relation to the Constitution. The standpoint of United Nations Committee and anti-death penalty movements will be presented as well as the discussion on the causal link between imposing death penalty against the defendants and its ability to diminish criminality in society. The recognition of the right to equal freedom and respect for human rights by adopting less restrictive means to achieve Continue reading...