Question

If salivary amylase is lacking in saliva, which of the following events in the mouth cavity will be affected?
A. Proteins breaking down into amino acids
B. Starch breaking down into sugars
C. Fats breaking down into fatty acids and glycerol
D. Absorption of vitamins

Answer 1

The main enzyme in saliva is salivary amylase. Salivary amylase breaks down carbohydrates, including sugars, into smaller molecules. It helps the body digest starchy foods, such as potatoes, rice, or pasta, by breaking down large macromolecules into simpler components.

Complete Answer:
- It causes the release of saliva when food reaches the mouth. Saliva includes enzymes that perform essential functions in biology. The salivary enzymes help catalyse, or speed up, the rate of chemical reactions in the body, much like other enzymes in the body. To encourage digestion and the acquisition of energy from food, this role is needed.
- Enzymes in saliva: Salivary amylase (also known as ptyalin) breaks down starches into sugars that are smaller and simpler. To dilate blood vessels, salivary kallikrein helps create a vasodilator.
- Lingual lipase allows the triglycerides to break down into fatty acids and glycerides. Larger carbohydrates, called amylopectin and amylose, are broken down into maltose during this phase. Maltose is a sugar that consists of individual glucose subunits, the main source of energy for the human body.
- In our dental health, salivary amylase also has a function. It helps keep our teeth from developing starches. Besides salivary amylase, pancreatic amylase is also produced by humans, which later in the digestive process further breaks down starches.
- What increases their sweetness is the increased maltose concentration in the mouth that results from the mechanical and chemical breakdown of starches in whole grains. In the mouth, just about five percent of the starches break down. (This is a positive thing since more glucose in the mouth contributes to further tooth decay.) No more chemical degradation occurs when carbohydrates enter the stomach because the amylase enzyme does not work in the stomach's acidic conditions.

The correct Answer is option (B) Starch breaking down into sugars.

Note: A significant enzyme present in the oral cavity is human salivary alpha amylase (HSAmy). It belongs to the hydrolase family of glycosides and occurs in salivary secretions in different isoforms. Humans develop two forms of alpha amylase (salivary and pancreatic amylase) that are approximately 97% homologous overall.