The liver is the largest organ in the body which is responsible for many processes and functions. I am going to talk about 8 of the main functions.
1. Carbohydrate metabolism – Metabolism in the liver cannot occur without the nutrients. Energy from carbohydrates are essential for this reaction to occur. The liver is transforming only the excess glucose from food which is absorbed during the digestion. This excess glucose is covering into glycogen which is stored in the liver and in the muscles. It is important for a body, because if the level of the sugar in the blood falls, glycogen would reconvert again into glucose. Control under this reaction takes hormones called insulin and glucagon (produced by the pancreas). The glucagon is secreted to the blood vessels when the blood glucose is low and send the information to the liver and other organs which store the glycogen.
2. Protein metabolism- excess of amino acids are not stored by the body. Therefore, in the liver occur a process called deamination, where an excess of amino acids are broken down. During deamination the amino group is removed to form ammonia. Then the ammonia is modified to the less toxic urea. The urea is removed from the liver via the hepatic vein where in the blood is transported to the heart. From the heart to the kidney, urea is moving via following blood vessels, the aorta to the renal artery. From the kidney is removed with the urine.
3. Lipid metabolism-Excess of fatty acids is also stored by the liver, but if the glycogen will fill up the store, the fatty acids will be exported in the blood to other organs such as the kidneys (on the surface) and to other adipose tissues. The excess of carbohydrate will be also converted into fatty acids by the liver. The liver made from them the cholesterol. If a person eats food which also contains cholesterol the body would have excess. If it’s happening, the cholesterol will be excreted into the bile. By this the liver prevents the body from accumulation of the LDL cholesterol in the artery walls which can cause heart attack or stroke.
4. Production of bile- the hepatocyte in the liver produce the bile. The bile contains bile salt, the bile pigment (called bilirubin and is produced by the breakdown of red blood cells, namely, heme). Also cholesterol, water, sodium chloride and sodium hydrogen carbonate what cause on the green-yellow colour of the fluid which is after stored in the gall bladder and secreted into the duodenum.
Bile contains water, cholesterol, fats, bile salts, proteins, and bilirubin. Bile salts breaks up fats, and bilirubin gives bile and stool a yellowish color. If the liquid bile contains too much cholesterol, bile salts, or bilirubin, under certain conditions it can harden into stones. They may occur as a simple, large stone or many small ones. Gallstones are mixtures of compound, but are mostly cholesterol.
This is monitored by the cells within the Islets of Langerhans, which is located in the control (the pancreas). After skipping a meal or tough physical exercise blood glucose concentration decreases. Alpha cells in the islets detect this drop and are stimulated to secrete glucagon. Glucagon is a polypeptide hormone which influences an increase in blood glucose concentration. Glucagon travels through the bloodstream until it reaches glucagon receptors which are predominantly found in the liver, as well as, the kidneys. Glucagon stimulates the breakdown of stored glycogen to be released into the bloodstream as glucose. It also stimulates the conversion of amino acids into glucose and the breakdown of fat into fatty acids. These effectors cause an increase in blood glucose levels back towards the normal. This increase in blood glucose concentration is detected by the alpha cells which then stop the secretion of
Our body obtains the energy by digesting the carbohydrates into glucose. Volumes of glucose are required by the body to create ATP. ATP is short for 'Adenosine Triphosphate ' and is an energy carrier. When we consume too many carbohydrates our body produces a lot of glucose and as a result blood glucose levels rise and sometimes they may rise over the normal range of blood glucose concentration. To bring it back within the healthy range, the homeostatic system of blood glucose regulation is used. The blood flows through the pancreas where the beta cells, receptors, detect the high blood glucose level. To counteract this stimuli beta cells alert the control centre, which are also the beta cells located in the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas. The secretion of insulin has to be done quickly but can only be carried out when insulin gene is switched on. Turning on the insulin gene switch can take 30 minutes to an hour therefore, the production of insulin by beta cells are done in advance and are packaged in vesicles right until blood glucose rises. Glucose comes into the beta cell to trigger the vesicle that contains the insulin to move towards the plasma membrane and fuse. This releases the insulin into the bloodstream where they are distributed throughout the body and only affect specific target cells. The receptor, a protein, on the target cell’s plasma membrane recognises and connects
The metabolism of fructose in the liver is complex, but there are two important results. Fructose is more readily turned into fat. Fructose metabolism signals the liver to increase fat storage. A calorie is not a calorie. Table sugar (sucrose) is a two unit sugar, one glucose and one fructose melded together. Therefore a high level of added sugar in the diet is also a high level of fructose.
During catabolism, chemical energy such as ATP is released. The energy released during catabolism is released in three phases. During the first phase, large molecules are broken down. These include molecules such as proteins, polysaccharides, and lipids. These molecules are converted into amino acids and carbohydrates are converted into different types of sugar. The lipids are broken down into fatty acids
This pear shaped organ contracts while we eat, then sends bile to the small intestine (WebMD (2).)
What is hepatic cirrhosis? According to the medical dictionary hepatic cirrhosis is when scar tissue replaces the liver’s healthy tissue. This disease changes the structure of the liver and blood vessels that nurture it. It reduces the liver’s capability to produce proteins and process hormones, nutrients, medications, and poisons. Cirrhosis is an illness that gets worse over time and possibly can become life threatening. This serious illness is ranked as the ninth leading cause of death in the U.S. It is the third most common cause of death for adults between 45 and 65 years of age. It occurs in more than fifty percent of undernourished chronic alcoholics. Unfortunately it kills about 35,000 people per year. In other country’s such as Africa and Asia death from cirrhosis is usually caused by hepatitis B.
During digestion, the body breaks down food into smaller molecules that could then be used by the body’s cells and tissues in order to perform functions. This starts off in the mouth with the physical movements of chewing and the chemical breakdown by saliva. Enzymes in the stomach break food down further after traveling from the mouth through the esophagus. The food from here then moves into the small intestine, where pancreatic juices and enzymes dissolve proteins, carbohydrates, and fibers, and bile from the liver breaks down fats into these small molecules. Any portion of the fibers or food that were unable to be broken down are passed from the small intestine to the large intestine, which is where the digestive tract transitions into the excretory tract, then the colon and out of the rectum. Any liquids that have been stripped of their nutrients by the body proceed from the stomach to the kidneys. In the kidneys, sodium ions (Na+), uric acid, and urea are exchanged with water, which moves urinary bladder and is excreted through the
Liver is a vital organ and performs several roles; produce proteins that help the blood to clot and removing body wastes; regulates the supply of substances such as glucose throughout the body (Potter et al., 2012). To be able to perform these functions the liver cells must function normally. Alcohol abuse is usually connected to alcoholic liver disease that permanently damaged the liver due to excessive drinking and continued excessive drinking can shorten lifespan. If liver cirrhosis has not yet occurred, the liver can heal once the patient stop drinking alcohol (ABS, 2010).
For people with no problems the intestines and stomach digest the carbohydrates that we take in into glucose, which is the body’s main source of energy. After we digest our food the glucose moves to the bloodstream. To get the glucose out of your blood and into the cells of your body the pancreas makes a hormone called insulin (Mayo Clinic, 2010). When you have gestational diabetes either your body does not make enough insulin during your pregna...
The liver is the largest internal organ in our body, weighing about 3 pounds. It is reddish-brown and rubbery to the touch (WebMD, n.d.). Our liver is one of the most important organs in our bodies. It exists to process nutrients from the food we eat, make proteins, make bile and remove toxins.
Blood glucose levels are the measurement of glucose in an individual’s blood. This is important because glucose is the body’s main source of fuel and the brains only source of fuel. Without energy from glucose the cells would die. Glucose homeostasis is primarily controlled in the liver, muscle, and fat where it stored as glycogen. The pancreas is also a significant organ that deals with glucose. The pancreas helps regulate blood glucose levels. Alpha-islet and beta-islet pancreatic cells measure blood glucose levels and they also regulate hormone release. Alpha cells produce glucagon and beta cells produce insulin. The body releases insulin in response to elevated blood glucose levels to allow the glucose inside of cells and
While I was scrolling down the Korean folktales, one story’s title caught my eye. That story was called “The Rabbit’s Liver”. At first, when I read the title, I was extremely disgusted by it because really, who would want to read a story about a liver, especially maybe about a dying rabbit’s liver! But then, I’m the type of person who likes to read those weird/unusual stories anyway, so I clicked on the link.
Immediately after a high carbohydrate meal, Insulin secrets rapidly due to glucose absorption into blood. This insulin act on many tissues in body and insulin turn causes rapid uptake, storage and use of glucose almost all issues of the body, but especially by the muscles, adipose tissue and liver. (8)
The pancreas uses these two hormones in order to monitor blood glucose levels. After a meal, blood glucose usually rises. This is when insulin secretion will start (Nussey S, Whitehead S. “Endocrinology: An Integrated Approach”). Consequently, blood glucose decrease to the normal range. This is how insulin maintains blood levels when is high. However, when blood level falls below normal range, glucagon comes into play. Low blood glucose occurs usually when hungry and during exercise. This will then triggers glucagon secretion. When blood level falls, the body goes into imbalance. Hence is why in order to maintain homeostasis glucagon is crucial. The body will tell the pancreas to increase more glucose and the pancreas will secrete glucagon by taking glycogen from the liver to produce glucose. The glucose will produce energy and will make blood glucose concentration increase (Homeostasis of Insulin and Glucose, Abpischools.org). When the pancreas cannot maintain homeostasis, many problems will arise in the body. When the pancreas fails to produce insulin, type 1 and 2 diabetes can occur. For those with type 1 diabetes, insulin injections will be needed in order to regulate blood glucose level, otherwise, glucose levels will be out of control. For type 2 diabetes, they are not insulin dependent like type 1, however, the body does not create enough in the body. When blood glucose