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ANIMAL NUTRITION

What is a balanced diet?

A meal that contains all the necessary nutrients in correct proportions, i.e. carbohydrates,
proteins, fats, vitamins & minerals, water and fibre.

Why should energy intake relate to the following?

Gender;
Men should be given more food than women because they have a large muscular body.
Age;
Young children require more energy for their size than adults do. This is because children are still
growing and are more active. Also, extra proteins are required for making new tissues as the child
grows. In addition, more calcium, iron and vitamin A are needed for bone formation, red blood
cells and disease resistance respectively.

Occupation;
The amount of energy people use in physical activity varies according to how active they are, i.e.
 Sedentary work (office workers, clerical services) needs less amount of work
 Moderately active – light industry workers need more energy than sedentary workers.
 Very active – (e.g. mine workers, builders, steel workers) need more energy than the
other groups above.

Pregnancy;
Energy requirements are increased during pregnancy to allow for the growth of the baby and the
adjustment of the mother’s body to pregnancy. Pregnant women require more supply of calcium,
proteins, iron and vitamin D.
Lactation;
Lactation means the production of breast milk for feeding the baby. Extra energy is required for
the production of milk. Fats are laid down during pregnancy as an energy store. A lactating
mother’s diet should contain protein, calcium and vitamin A and D.

The main food groups are;

 Carbohydrates
 Proteins
 Fats / oils

Carbohydrates
- There are the major energy sources for the body.
- Consist of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
- Exist in two types; (i)Sugars and (ii) Starch
(i)Sugars;
- are the simplest form of carbohydrates
- all sugars taste sweet
- all sugars are soluble in water
- there are three types of sugars
Type a)- Simple sugars (reducing sugars)
They are the simplest form of sugar. Simple sugars consist of a single independent saccharide
molecule hence are called monosaccharides, e.g. glucose, fructose, galactose.
Type b) – Double sugars
Complex sugars consisting of two sugar molecules hence called disaccharides, e.g. sucrose,
lactose, maltose.

Refer to the figure below on how disaccharides are formed.

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Monosaccharides Disaccharide
> Glucose + glucose Maltose
> Glucose + fructose Sucrose
> Glucose + Galactose Lactose

Type c) – Long sugars

 These are complex sugars also called polysaccharides which are made up of many sugar
units (more than three monosaccharides) linked together forming a long chain e.g.
glycogen, cellulose, pectin.
 They taste sweet
 They are soluble in water
 They are a more complex form of sugar

(ii) Starch
- It is a complex form of carbohydrate
- It is not soluble in water
- It consists of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
- Starch molecules are made of a chain of sugar molecules hence named polysaccharides

Proteins
- Replace and repair worn out tissues
- Essential in the manufacture of hormones, antibodies and enzymes
- Excess is stored as an energy source
- Are made of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen elements
- Also contains small amounts of Sulphur, iron, phosphorus
Proteins are made of smaller units called amino acids
Structure of amino acid
H

R C COOH

NH2
There are 20 amino acids.
Examples of amino acids are cysteine, glycine, alanine, glutamine, proline etc.

Proteins are classified as;

- Plant protein – e.g. beans peanuts (legumes)
- Animal protein – e.g. milk, meat, eggs

Fats
 It is a good energy source
 Fats are usually solids whilst oils are liquids and insoluble in water
 Fats consist of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen elements
 A fat molecule is made of a glycerol molecule and three fatty acids

Fatty acids (e.g. steric acid, palmitic acid, oleic acid)

glycerol
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Food tests

Food Nutrient Methodology Positive Result Expected

- Place a food sample on a white tile

Starch - Add 3 drops of iodine solution on the
(Use Iodine Solution) piece of food Blue-black colour

- Put a food solution in a test tube

Glucose
Also called Testing for reducing
sugars
(Use Benedicts’ Solution or
Fehling’s solution)
Protein
Also called the biuret test
(Use Copper sulphate soln &
Sodium hydroxide soln)
- Add a 5 drops of Benedict’ s soln,
shake & place the mixture in a hot Brick red colour
water bath for 2 minutes
(Also, green, orange and yellow
indicate presence of glucose in
small amounts)
- Put the food solution in a test tube
- Add 5 drops of Copper sulphate and
shake Purple (violet / mauve) colour
- Add a 5 drops of Sodium hydroxide
and shake

-Place a food sample in test tube & add

Fats a ethanol and shake
(a) Emulsion test - Allow the mixture to settle and then Milky white colour
decant the top layer into another tube
with water

(b) Using Filter paper - Place a food solution on a filter paper Greasy opaque mark appears on
and leave it to dry paper.

Digestion
It is the breaking down of large insoluble food substances into smaller soluble particles that can
be absorbed.
This process takes place in the alimentary canal (gut), which is a tube that extends from the
mouth to the anus. When straightened, a mature gut measures between 7.5m and 9.0m long

Types of digestion

1) Physical digestion (mechanical digestion)

The breaking down of food substances through the action of teeth and muscular contractions.
It involves the processes of chewing and peristalsis. During chewing the teeth tear, cut crush /
grind food into smaller particles with a large surface area for enzyme action.

2) Chemical digestion

The conversion of large food substances through the action of enzymes.

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Stages involved in the human digestion.

1. Ingestion; the taking in of food through the mouth

2. Digestion; the breaking down of large insoluble food molecules into smaller soluble particles.

3. Absorption; the passage of digested food through the intestinal walls (in the ileum) to the body
fluids. i.e. the circulatory system

4. Assimilation; the building up of body’s own materials from the absorbed food substances. i.e.
usage of the absorbed food substances.

5. Egestion; The discharge of the undigested, unabsorbed material form the alimentary canal.
The is done through the anus.

(Structure of the alimentary canal)

Functions of parts;
a) The mouth;
Ingestion and mastication (chewing) takes place in the mouth (buccal cavity).
 Teeth serve to grind food into smaller particles for easy swallowing and increasing the
surface area for enzyme activity.
 The saliva moistens / lubricates the food
 The tongue helps to work the food into a ball called food bolus to be swallowed easily.

The enzyme salivary amylase produced by salivary glands under the tongue begins the chemical
digestion of starch into maltose.

When food is swallowed, the soft palate closes the opening of the nasal cavity and epiglottis
closes opening the trachea to avoid choking. The food bolus is then pushed down through the
oesophagus the process of peristalsis
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Circular muscle Note that the circular muscles

always contract behind the
food bolus, thus explaining its
direction

Longitudinal muscle

b) The Stomach;
This is a muscular bag which stores food temporarily and release it in small quantities to the
lower alimentary canal. It produces gastric juices which mix with food and churns it to a watery
paste called chyme. Peristaltic action helps to churn the food.

The gastric juice secreted from the stomach walls contains;

1. Hydrochloric acid – which inactivates the salivary amylase and kills most of the bacteria
ingested with food.
2. Enzyme pepsin – which begins the chemical digestion of proteins to peptides. Pepsin is
only active in acidic conditions.
3. Rennin – only produced in infants coagulate (clot / thicken) milk thus making it digestible.

4. Mucus – it prevents the stomach from being corroded by its own hydrochloric acid.

c) Small intestine
The upper part is wider and called Duodenum, it is about 20cm long.
The rest of the small intestine is called the ileum and it’s the longest part of the gut, about 6m to
7m.
The final stages of digestion take place in the duodenum.
Duodenum
Bile; a greenish fluid made in the liver and stored in gall bladder, is secreted into the
duodenum to emulsify fats; i.e. making them digestible.
Pancreatic juice; an alkaline made by the pancreas and contains a number of enzymes.
Trypsin – This converts some proteins peptides.
 Pancreatic amylase – Acts on starch converting it to maltose.
 Lipase - This breaks down fats into glycerol and fatty acids.
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Other digestive enzymes contained in the pancreatic juice and the intestinal juices are;
maltase, lactase, sucrase, peptidase.
maltase
Maltose Glucose

lactase
Lactose Glucose

peptidase
Peptides Amino acids

sucrase
Sucrose Glucose

Note also, that the pancreatic juice contains sodium hydrogen carbonate which is alkaline in
order to provide the suitable pH needed by the request of the enzymes.
Though the cells of the gut are partly made of proteins, they are not attacked by proteases
for the following reasons;
 The protein enzymes are secreted in an inactive form and only become active
when inside hydrochloric acid.
 There is mucus secretion which also serves to protect the gut cells from self
digestion.

Ileum
The digestive process of the duodenum continues here shortly and the walls of the ileum also
secrete intestinal juice which completes digestion.
The ileum is the site for absorption of the digested food material. The ileum is adapted to carry
out its function because of the following features;
 It is fairly long thus increasing the surface area for absorption.
 The epithelium cells are very thin for easy and rapid diffusion of food substances.
 It has many folds (finger-like projections called villi) on the inner lining thus
increasing the surface are for absorption.
 It is surrounded by a large network of blood capillaries to allow for easy diffusion
and rapid transport of food substances to other parts of the body.

The end products of digestion (glucose, amino acids, glycerol and fatty acids) are absorbed into
the blood stream through diffusion and active transport and they reach the liver through the
hepatic portal vein.

Structure of a villus as seen through a small section of the ileum.

The Villus

Section of
the ileum
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SUMMARY OF DIGESTIVE ENZYMES

LOCATION GLANDS ENZYME SUBSTRATE PRODUCT

Mouth Salivary Amylase Starch Maltose

Stomach Gastric Pepsin Protein Peptides

Rennin Milk protein Coagulated milk

Duodenum Pancreas Amylase Starch Maltose

Lipase Fats Fatty acids & Glycerol
Trypsin Protein & Peptides Amino acids

Ileum Ileum Lactase Lactose Glucose + Galactose

Lipase Fats Fatty acids + Glycerol
Maltase Maltose Glucose + Glucose
Sucrase Sucrose Glucose + Fructose
Peptidase Peptides Amino acids

ASSIMILATION
This is whereby the end products of digestion are used within the body.

1. Glucose
 Used by all cells during respiration
 Excess glucose is converted to glycogen and stored in the liver

2. Amino acids
 They are used to make protoplasm (living material), hormones and enzymes
 Used to repair and replace worn out tissues
 Excess amino acids are deaminated by the liver to form urea which is excreted in urine

3. Fatty acids & glycerol

 These recombine in the lacteal to form fat globules
 They are stored under the skin and around organs for heat insulation and as an energy
store
 Used by cells for respiration when glucose and glycogen are used up.

d) Large Intestine
The large intestine is divided into the caecum, colon, and rectum.
 The caecum is a swollen sac located in the lower right-hand portion of the abdominal cavity.
 The colon plays a very important role in the re-absorption of water from the undigested waste
food.
 The rectum, about 15 cm, is the terminal portion of the large intestine. At the exit of the
rectum, called the anus, is a round muscle, the anal sphincter that closes the anus. The
rectum stores faeces and release them through the anus at interval. The release of faeces is
called egestion / elimination / defecation

Faeces are a mixture of substances such as;

 Undigested food mainly the cellulose
 Dead and living bacteria from the alimentary canal
 Mucus and dead cells from the gut walls. The cells lining the gut have a limited life span.
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 Surplus bile and other secretions which colour the faeces.

The large intestine has a smooth mucosal lining (only the rectum has folds) that secretes mucus
to lubricate the waste materials.

Describe the role of the liver in metabolism

1. Deamination
A process whereby excess amino acids are broken down by the liver into glycogen and urea
(nitrogenous waste)
The human body cannot store excess amino acids; therefore they are taken to the liver for
deamination where the amino group is removed and the residues converted to glycogen for
storage.

2. Fat metabolism
Breaking down of fats into CO2 and H20 to release energy.

3. Detoxification
The conversion of harmful substances into less harmful ones; e.g.
 Chemical substances in drugs and alcohol are broken down into harmless substances.
 Used hormones are broken down into inactive forms
 Ammonia produced during Deamination is converted into less poisonous substance
called urea – to be excreted through the kidneys.
 Dead red blood cells are broken down and the iron stored. The other waste forms bile.

4. Formation of bile
The liver produces bile salts which are important in the emulsification and subsequently
absorption of fats

5. Storage organ
A number of substances used by the body (such as bile, glycogen, iron, vitamin A, B, D) are
stored in the liver.
6. Regulation of blood sugar
The liver is able to convert glucose, amino acids and other substances to an insoluble
carbohydrate called glycogen. Some of the glucose may be from the hepatic portal vein carrying
blood rich in digested food from the ileum to the liver.
When the glucose level is higher than normal range (80mg /100cm 3 to 160mg/100cm3 of
blood) the pancreas secretes insulin hormone into the blood which activates the liver
cells to convert glucose to glycogen.
If the concentration of blood sugar falls below 80mg/100cm3 of blood, the pancreas
secretes another hormone – glucagon which activates the liver cells to convert glycogen
to glucose.

GLUCOSE
by
Converted
Converted by

Insulin
Glucagon

GYCOGEN
Therefore this brings the glucose concentration to normal range.
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Note; if the blood glucose level rises above 160mg/100cm3, glucose is excreted by the
kidneys. A Blood glucose concentration below 40mg/100cm 3 affects the brain cells adversely
leading to convulsions and coma.
Lack of insulin leads to a condition called Sugar diabetes.

Addendum
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Courtesy of Lebsy Mb
sContact; 71726846