The small intestine is descriptively divided into three sections: the duodenum, the ileum, and the jejunum. The duodenum accepts the digested food paste, called chyme, from the stomach, through the pylorus sphincter. The duodenum is about ten inches long and forms a curve around the head of the pancreas. The duodenum secretes digestive enzymes invertase and erepsin, necessary for digestion. The gall bladder, liver, and pancreas also deposit enzymes and bile into the duodenum. The jejunum is the intermediate section of the small intestine, measuring a little over two meters long. The jejunum carries digested food through the small intestine rapidly by peristaltic waves and, as a result, seldom has much food matter in it. It is connected to the abdominal wall by the mesentery. The ileum is the last, and longest, segment of the small intestine, measuring up to four meters or longer. Most of the absorption of useful food nutrients takes place in the ileum before it empties out into the cecum of the large intestine. Research Small Intestine
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Medicine
Research Small Intestine