Ileum
Encyclopedia
The ileum ˈɪliːəm is the final section of the small intestine
in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish
, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear and the terms posterior intestine or distal intestine may be used instead of ileum.
The ileum follows the duodenum
and jejunum
and is separated from the cecum
by the ileocecal valve
(ICV). In humans, the ileum is about 2-4 m long, and the pH
is usually between 7 and 8 (neutral or slightly alkaline).
and bile salts and whatever products of digestion that were not absorbed by the jejunum. The wall itself is made up of folds, each of which has many tiny finger-like projections known as villi on its surface. In turn, the epithelial cells that line these villi possess even larger numbers of microvilli. Therefore the ileum has an extremely large surface area both for the adsorption
(attachment) of enzyme
molecules and for the absorption of products of digestion
. The DNES
(diffuse neuroendocrine system) cells of the ileum secrete various hormones (gastrin, secretin, cholecystokinin) into the blood. Cells in the lining of the ileum secrete the protease
and carbohydrase
enzymes responsible for the final stages of protein
and carbohydrate
digestion into the lumen of the intestine. These enzymes are present in the cytoplasm
of the epithelial cells.
The villi contain large numbers of capillaries that take the amino acids and glucose produced by digestion to the hepatic portal vein
and the liver. Lacteals are small lymph vessels, and are present in villi. They absorb fatty acid
and glycerol
, the products of fat digestion. Layers of circular and longitudinal smooth muscle
enable the digested food to be pushed along the ileum by waves of muscle contractions called peristalsis
.
The undigested food (waste and water) are sent to the colon.
the ileum is connected to the navel
by the vitelline duct
. In roughly 2% of humans, this duct fails to close during the first seven weeks after birth, causing a condition called Meckel's diverticulum
.
.
The ileum is the short terminal part of the small intestine and forms the connection to the large intestine.It is suspended by the caudal part of the mesentery (mesoileum) and is attached, in addition, to the cecum by the ileocecal fold. the ileum terminates at the cecocolic junction of the large intestine forming the ileal orifice. In the dog the ileal orifice is located at the level of the first or second lumbar vertebra, in the ox in the level of the fourth lumbar vertebrae, in the sheep and goat at the level of the caudal point of the costal arch. By active muscular contraction of the ileum, and closure of the ileal opening as a result of engorgement, the ileum prevents the backflow of ingesta and the equalization of pressure between jejunum and the base of the cecum. disturbance of this sensitive balance is not uncommon and is the one of the causes of colic in horses.
Small intestine
The small intestine is the part of the gastrointestinal tract following the stomach and followed by the large intestine, and is where much of the digestion and absorption of food takes place. In invertebrates such as worms, the terms "gastrointestinal tract" and "large intestine" are often used to...
in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear and the terms posterior intestine or distal intestine may be used instead of ileum.
The ileum follows the duodenum
Duodenum
The duodenum is the first section of the small intestine in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear and the terms anterior intestine or proximal intestine may be used instead of duodenum...
and jejunum
Jejunum
The jejunum is the middle section of the small intestine in most higher vertebrates, including mammals, reptiles, and birds. In fish, the divisions of the small intestine are not as clear and the terms middle intestine or mid-gut may be used instead of jejunum.The jejunum lies between the duodenum...
and is separated from the cecum
Cecum
The cecum or caecum is a pouch, connecting the ileum with the ascending colon of the large intestine. It is separated from the ileum by the ileocecal valve or Bauhin's valve, and is considered to be the beginning of the large intestine. It is also separated from the colon by the cecocolic...
by the ileocecal valve
Ileocecal valve
The ileocecal valve, or ileocaecal valve, is of a bilabial papilla structure with physiological sphincter muscle situated at the junction of the small intestine and the large intestine, with recent evidence indicating an anatomical sphincter may also be present in humans) Its critical function is...
(ICV). In humans, the ileum is about 2-4 m long, and the pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
is usually between 7 and 8 (neutral or slightly alkaline).
Function
The function of the ileum is mainly to absorb vitamin B12Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12, vitamin B12 or vitamin B-12, also called cobalamin, is a water-soluble vitamin with a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system, and for the formation of blood. It is one of the eight B vitamins...
and bile salts and whatever products of digestion that were not absorbed by the jejunum. The wall itself is made up of folds, each of which has many tiny finger-like projections known as villi on its surface. In turn, the epithelial cells that line these villi possess even larger numbers of microvilli. Therefore the ileum has an extremely large surface area both for the adsorption
Adsorption
Adsorption is the adhesion of atoms, ions, biomolecules or molecules of gas, liquid, or dissolved solids to a surface. This process creates a film of the adsorbate on the surface of the adsorbent. It differs from absorption, in which a fluid permeates or is dissolved by a liquid or solid...
(attachment) of enzyme
Enzyme
Enzymes are proteins that catalyze chemical reactions. In enzymatic reactions, the molecules at the beginning of the process, called substrates, are converted into different molecules, called products. Almost all chemical reactions in a biological cell need enzymes in order to occur at rates...
molecules and for the absorption of products of digestion
Digestion
Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into smaller components that are more easily absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism: a breakdown of large food molecules to smaller ones....
. The DNES
Diffuse neuro-endocrine system
The Diffuse Neuro-Endocrine System consists of cells from the central nervous system , Peripheral nervous system and nearly all organs with the common phenotype:...
(diffuse neuroendocrine system) cells of the ileum secrete various hormones (gastrin, secretin, cholecystokinin) into the blood. Cells in the lining of the ileum secrete the protease
Protease
A protease is any enzyme that conducts proteolysis, that is, begins protein catabolism by hydrolysis of the peptide bonds that link amino acids together in the polypeptide chain forming the protein....
and carbohydrase
Carbohydrase
__Carbohydrase is an enzyme that cleaves carbohydrates into simple sugars.Carbohydrase acts on carbohydrates of which are made from the elements and carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. After reacting these elements are arranged into rings, where 1 ring is a monosaccharide, 2 rings are disaccharides, many...
enzymes responsible for the final stages of protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
and carbohydrate
Carbohydrate
A carbohydrate is an organic compound with the empirical formula ; that is, consists only of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, with a hydrogen:oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 . However, there are exceptions to this. One common example would be deoxyribose, a component of DNA, which has the empirical...
digestion into the lumen of the intestine. These enzymes are present in the cytoplasm
Cytoplasm
The cytoplasm is a small gel-like substance residing between the cell membrane holding all the cell's internal sub-structures , except for the nucleus. All the contents of the cells of prokaryote organisms are contained within the cytoplasm...
of the epithelial cells.
The villi contain large numbers of capillaries that take the amino acids and glucose produced by digestion to the hepatic portal vein
Hepatic portal vein
The hepatic portal vein is not a true vein, because it does not conduct blood directly to the heart. It is a vessel in the abdominal cavity that drains blood from the gastrointestinal tract and spleen to capillary beds in the liver...
and the liver. Lacteals are small lymph vessels, and are present in villi. They absorb fatty acid
Fatty acid
In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with a long unbranched aliphatic tail , which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have a chain of an even number of carbon atoms, from 4 to 28. Fatty acids are usually derived from...
and glycerol
Glycerol
Glycerol is a simple polyol compound. It is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid that is widely used in pharmaceutical formulations. Glycerol has three hydroxyl groups that are responsible for its solubility in water and its hygroscopic nature. The glycerol backbone is central to all lipids...
, the products of fat digestion. Layers of circular and longitudinal smooth muscle
Smooth muscle
Smooth muscle is an involuntary non-striated muscle. It is divided into two sub-groups; the single-unit and multiunit smooth muscle. Within single-unit smooth muscle tissues, the autonomic nervous system innervates a single cell within a sheet or bundle and the action potential is propagated by...
enable the digested food to be pushed along the ileum by waves of muscle contractions called peristalsis
Peristalsis
Peristalsis is a radially symmetrical contraction and relaxation of muscles which propagates in a wave down the muscular tube, in an anterograde fashion. In humans, peristalsis is found in the contraction of smooth muscles to propel contents through the digestive tract. Earthworms use a similar...
.
The undigested food (waste and water) are sent to the colon.
Differences between jejunum and ileum
There is no line of demarcation between the jejunum and the ileum. There are, however, subtle differences between the two.- The ileum has more fat inside the mesentery than the jejenum
- While the length of the intestinal tract contains lymphoid tissue, only the ileum has abundant Peyer's patches, unencapsulated lymphoid nodules that contain large numbers of lymphocyteLymphocyteA lymphocyte is a type of white blood cell in the vertebrate immune system.Under the microscope, lymphocytes can be divided into large lymphocytes and small lymphocytes. Large granular lymphocytes include natural killer cells...
s and other cells of the immune systemImmune systemAn immune system is a system of biological structures and processes within an organism that protects against disease by identifying and killing pathogens and tumor cells. It detects a wide variety of agents, from viruses to parasitic worms, and needs to distinguish them from the organism's own...
.
Embryology
In the fetusFetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
the ileum is connected to the navel
Navel
The navel is a scar on the abdomen caused when the umbilical cord is removed from a newborn baby...
by the vitelline duct
Vitelline duct
In the human embryo, the vitelline duct, also known as the omphalomesenteric duct, is a long narrow tube that joins the yolk sac to the midgut lumen of the developing fetus...
. In roughly 2% of humans, this duct fails to close during the first seven weeks after birth, causing a condition called Meckel's diverticulum
Meckel's diverticulum
A Meckel's diverticulum, a true congenital diverticulum, is a small bulge in the small intestine present at birth. It is a vestigial remnant of the omphalomesenteric duct , and is the most frequent malformation of the gastrointestinal tract...
.
Veterinary anatomy
In veterinary anatomy, the ileum is distinguished from the jejunum by being that portion of the jejunoileum that is connected to the caecum by the ileocecal foldIleocecal fold
The ileocecal fold or ileocaecal fold is an anatomical structure in the human abdomen. It is formed by a layer of peritoneum. The upper border is fixed to the ileum, opposite its mesenteric attachment, while the lower border passes over the ileocecal junction to join the mesenteriole of the...
.
The ileum is the short terminal part of the small intestine and forms the connection to the large intestine.It is suspended by the caudal part of the mesentery (mesoileum) and is attached, in addition, to the cecum by the ileocecal fold. the ileum terminates at the cecocolic junction of the large intestine forming the ileal orifice. In the dog the ileal orifice is located at the level of the first or second lumbar vertebra, in the ox in the level of the fourth lumbar vertebrae, in the sheep and goat at the level of the caudal point of the costal arch. By active muscular contraction of the ileum, and closure of the ileal opening as a result of engorgement, the ileum prevents the backflow of ingesta and the equalization of pressure between jejunum and the base of the cecum. disturbance of this sensitive balance is not uncommon and is the one of the causes of colic in horses.