Digestive enzyme

Digestive enzymes are a group of enzymes that break down polymeric macromolecules into their smaller building blocks, in order to facilitate their absorption into the cells of the body. Digestive enzymes are found in the digestive tracts of animals (including humans) and in the tracts of carnivorous plants, where they aid in the digestion of food, as well as inside cells, especially in their lysosomes, where they function to maintain cellular survival. Digestive enzymes of diverse specificities are found in the saliva secreted by the salivary glands, in the secretions of cells lining the stomach, in the pancreatic juice secreted by pancreatic exocrine cells, and in the secretions of cells lining the small and large intestines.

Digestive enzymes are classified based on their target substrates:

• Lipases split fatty acids into fats and oils.
• Proteases and peptidases split proteins into small peptides and amino acids.
• Amylases split carbohydrates such as starch and sugars into simple sugars such as glucose.
• Nucleases split nucleic acids into nucleotides.

In the human digestive system, the main sites of digestion are the mouth, stomach, and small intestine. Digestive enzymes are secreted by different exocrine glands including:

• Salivary glands
• Gastric glands in the stomach
• Secretory cells (islets) in the pancreas
• Secretory glands in the small intestine