Veterinary Clinical Biochemistry and Laboratory Diagnosis-II

INTRODUCTION

• As chyme floods into the small intestine from the stomach, two things must happen:
  • Acid must be quickly and efficiently neutralized to prevent damage to the duodenal mucosa
  • Macromolecular nutrients - proteins, fats and starch - must be broken down much further before their constituents can be absorbed through the mucosa into blood
• The pancreas plays a vital role in accomplishing both of these objectives. So, insufficient exocrine secretion by the pancreas leads to starvation, even if the animal is consuming adequate quantities of high quality food. In addition to its role as an exocrine organ, the pancreas is also an endocrine organ.

Functions of Pancreas:

• Exocrine : Secretion of digestive enzymes trypsin,chymotrypsin, lipase and amylase.
• Endocrine: Insulin, glucagon etc.They play a vital role in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.They are absolutely necessary for maintaining normal blood concentrations of glucose.