![]() It has the capacity of about half the size of an actual stomach, and can "eat" the equivalent of a normal portion of fish and chips. Once this hydration process is finished, the food gets broken down into smaller pieces that can be absorbed by the human body.Ĭomputer software is used to control how long food remains in a particular part of the stomach, and the release of the gut secretions. ![]() The top half of the model consists of a vessel in which food, stomach acids and digestive enzymes are mixed. ![]() He said: "The stomach is an extraordinarily complex organ, so you cannot create a model that will undertake all of these functions." "This model is important because it gets the science of digestion right."ĭr Stephen Bloom, head of metabolic medicine at Imperial College in London, agreed the model could be useful - but warned that it might have limitations. It even mimics the stomach contractions which are used to break up food, and send it on its way along the alimentary canal.ĭr Wickham hopes his model will help scientists understand more about how food gets processed in the gut, and which nutrients get absorbed.Īrmed with this knowledge, they may be able to develop healthier foods designed to manipulate the digestive process.įor instance, knowing how quickly glucose gets absorbed into the bloodstream would potentially help treat diabetes.ĭr Wickham said: "Our knowledge of what actually happens in the gut is still very rudimentary, but we hope that this model can help fill in some of the blanks."ĭr Peter Ellis, a biochemistry expert at King's College London, said: "This is an important tool that will allow us to understand what happens in the gut, which has essentially been like a black box until recently. ![]() Chief designer Dr Martin Wickham said his model was much more sophisticated than previous attempts, which tended to focus solely on reproducing the chemistry of digestion. ![]()
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