Question

Describe in short about the digestive glands associated with the alimentary canal and their main functions.

Answer 1

Hint: The special glands that secrete digestive juices in order to perform digestion of complex compounds.

Complete answer:
Digestive glands are those having ducts that pour secretions into the digestive system. An alimentary canal and digestive glands are parts of the human respiratory system.
The various parts of the alimentary canal include mouth, teeth, esophagus, pharynx, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, anus.
The digestive glands associated with the alimentary canal include the salivary glands, the liver, pancreas, gastric glands, and intestinal glands. Out of these the major glands are salivary glands, pancreas, and liver.

Functions of the digestive glands
- Salivary gland – it secretes salivary amylase enzyme which breaks starch into sugar molecules.
- Gastric glands – it secretes hydrochloric acid (HCl), pepsin enzyme, and mucus. Pepsin helps in the digestion of proteins while mucus helps in the protection of the inner lining of the stomach from acid.
- Intestinal glands – they secrete intestinal juices to break fat molecules and bile salts into simpler substances.
- Liver – it is an organ that secretes bile juice to break fat molecules.
- Pancreas – an organ that secretes insulin hormone along with pancreatic juices that break proteins, fats molecules in the small intestine.

Note: The salivary glands, liver, gallbladder, and the pancreas aid the processes of ingestion, digestion, and absorption. These accessory organs of digestion play key roles in the digestive process. Each of these organs either secretes or stores substances that pass through ducts into the alimentary canal.