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Your liver
The liver is the largest internal organ, located in the upper right abdomen. It performs over 200 functions including storing nutrients, secreting bile, and synthesizing proteins and cholesterol. The liver creates bile which is composed of water, ions, bile acids, and organic molecules. Bile emulsifies fats during digestion so they can be absorbed by the small intestine. The liver also processes waste from red blood cell breakdown and other metabolic activities.
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Your liver
- 1. The Liver • Thelargest single organ in the human body. • In an adult, it weighs about three pounds and is roughly the size of a football. • Located in the upper right-hand part of the abdomen, behind the lower ribs.
- 2. Functions • The liverhas more than 200 functions, including: – Storage of Nutrients – Bile Secretion – Synthesis of plasma Proteins – Synthesis of cholesterol
- 3. Liver Physiology, LarryFrolich, Yavapai College, March 10, 2006 Locate your liver 1. ANATOMY
- 4. How Do Iwork? Eat. Your liver creates bile. Food is digested in the Intestine. Everything from intestine goes to liver to be used by the body.
- 5. Liver Physiology, LarryFrolich, Yavapai College, March 10, 2006 What is bile? • Bile composed of water, ions, bile acids, organic molecules (including cholesterol, phospholipids, bilirubin) • Gallstones are mostly cholesterol • Acids and salts emulsify fats for absorption across wall of small intestines into lacteal lymph capillaries (review) • Contains waste products from RBC breakdown and other metabolic processing (color of feces from bilirubin in bile)(review) • Ions buffer chyme from stomach (review)
- 6. Liver Physiology, LarryFrolich, Yavapai College, March 10, 2006 Cholesterol—one example of liver processing • Our body needs cholesterol for – Cell membranes – Vitamin D – Hormones—progesterone and testosterone – Myelin (neuron axonal “wrapping”) – Component of bile salts • 85% of cholesterol in our blood is “endogenous” or manufactured by our own cells (mostly liver) • 15% comes from the food we eat • So, is zero-cholesterol good…or even healthy?
- 7. Liver Physiology, LarryFrolich, Yavapai College, March 10, 2006 Cholesterol—one example of liver processing • Our body needs cholesterol for – Cell membranes – Vitamin D – Hormones—progesterone and testosterone – Myelin (neuron axonal “wrapping”) – Component of bile salts • 85% of cholesterol in our blood is “endogenous” or manufactured by our own cells (mostly liver) • 15% comes from the food we eat • So, is zero-cholesterol good…or even healthy?
Editor's Notes
- #5 This slide is going to help you understand digestion and how the liver cleans your blood. (Remember to point out the organs that are involved in digestion.) When we eat, the food goes down the esophagus into our stomach. Liver’s first job is the production of bile to help break down your food. This is a great time to point out the gallbladder (the small green pouch underneath the liver) and that it is a storage device. Ask the kids if they know what bile is and explain that it’s produced by the liver to help breakdown food when you eat, can even mention that it’s a yellowish, blue green fluid. The food then leaves the stomach and goes into the intestine (may point to diagram while giving explanation) where digestion takes place. Now that there is food in your intestines, your blood vessels take out all the vitamins, minerals, iron, copper, salt and fat and anything else your body can use. Once the blood has taken out all those nutrients, it goes straight to the liver to be cleaned. That means it’s time for your liver to pull out all those vitamins, minerals, iron, copper, salt and fat out of your blood. Then, after the liver has cleaned the blood, it leaves the liver and goes to your heart to be pumped through your whole body. Think of the blood in the liver like a super highway – there are 2 main roads – 1 road brings the blood to the liver to be cleaned and the other road takes the clean blood out to be pumped through the body by the heart. This is how the liver gives you energy to keep you alert and active. This is a great time to ask the class: let’s think about it now – if your liver isn’t working right is it cleaning the blood? do you think unclean blood would be good for your heart? No and it can cause problems with your heart, kidneys and more