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stomach acid
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Stomach Acid
Gastric juices secreted by specialized cells lining pits in the wall of the stomach. Gastric juice contains an enzyme called pepsin that digests protein. It also contains hydrochloric acid and water. The hydrochloric acid is very strong and is needed to help kill bacteria that may cause illness and provides acid conditions in which pepsin works quickly.
On a scale of acidity called the pH scale, the acid secretions from the stomach wall are between pH 0.8 and pH 1.0. This makes the secretions so strong that, if bottled, they would be too dangerous to have on an open shelf in a school laboratory and would have to be labelled ‘corrosive’. This is strong enough normally to destroy human tissues on contact. The stomach is protected against damage from the acid by a lining of mucus, unless a person suffers from an ulcer.
© Research Machines plc 2008. All rights reserved. Helicon Publishing is a division of Research Machines plc.
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alimentary canal
amino acid
amylase
anus
balanced diet
bile
bloodstream
carbohydrate
colon (anatomy)
diffusion
digestion
duodenum
egestion
emulsify
enzyme
fat
fatty acid
fibre, dietary
food test
glycerol
growth (biology)
ileum
intestine
lipase
liver
mineral salt
mouth
nutrition
oesophagus
organ (anatomy)
pancreas
pepsin
peristalsis
protease
protein
repair
saliva
stomach
stomach acid
villus
vitamin
water
amino acid
amylase
anus
balanced diet
bile
bloodstream
carbohydrate
colon (anatomy)
diffusion
digestion
duodenum
egestion
emulsify
enzyme
fat
fatty acid
fibre, dietary
food test
glycerol
growth (biology)
ileum
intestine
lipase
liver
mineral salt
mouth
nutrition
oesophagus
organ (anatomy)
pancreas
pepsin
peristalsis
protease
protein
repair
saliva
stomach
stomach acid
villus
vitamin
water
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