MadSci Network: General Biology |
The digestion of starch does not continue in the "stomach solution". The digestion of starch in the mouth is done by the enzyme amylase which operates at a pH above 5.0-5.5 -- the pH in the stomach (1-1.5) inactivates amylase by denaturing it and preventing catalysis. There is no digestion of complex sugars (starches) in the stomach. Once food arrives in the small intestine where the acid from the stomach has been neutralized and is back up near 7.5-8.8, pancreatic amylase and other enzymes (glucosidase, dextrinase, sucrase, and lactase) digest the starches into simple sugars for absorption into the blood. All other enzymes (except pepsin which is found in the stomach) operate in the small intestine at pH values around 7.5-8.0
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