2026 | Digestive System | Fully Solved
1. The digestive tract begins at the:
A. duodenum
B. stomach
C. esophagus
D. mouth
Answer: D. mouth
Rationale: The alimentary canal extends from the mouth to the anus.
2. Which organ is part of the alimentary canal?
A. gallbladder
B. pancreas
C. esophagus
D. liver
Answer: C. esophagus
Rationale: The esophagus is a continuous portion of the GI tract; the liver, pancreas, and gallbladder are
accessory organs.
3. Which is an accessory digestive organ?
A. pancreas
B. jejunum
C. esophagus
D. colon
Answer: A. pancreas
Rationale: The pancreas contributes digestive enzymes and bicarbonate but food does not pass through it.
4. Mechanical digestion in the mouth is primarily accomplished by:
A. pepsin secretion
B. mastication
C. bile emulsification
D. pancreatic lipase
Answer: B. mastication
Rationale: Chewing physically breaks food into smaller particles and mixes it with saliva.
5. Salivary amylase begins digestion of:
A. nucleic acid only
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, B. protein
C. starch
D. triglyceride exclusively
Answer: C. starch
Rationale: Salivary amylase starts hydrolysis of dietary starch in the mouth.
6. The tongue contributes to digestion by:
A. absorbing most lipids
B. secreting bile
C. manipulating food and forming a bolus
D. producing hydrochloric acid
Answer: C. manipulating food and forming a bolus
Rationale: The tongue positions food for chewing, mixes it with saliva, and forms the bolus for
swallowing.
7. The pharyngeal phase of swallowing is:
A. dependent on gastric acid
B. involuntary
C. limited to the colon
D. entirely voluntary
Answer: B. involuntary
Rationale: Swallowing begins voluntarily, then pharyngeal and esophageal phases proceed largely as
reflex actions.
8. The esophagus moves a swallowed bolus mainly by:
A. peristalsis
B. filtration
C. diffusion
D. segmentation
Answer: A. peristalsis
Rationale: Peristaltic waves propel material through the esophagus toward the stomach.
9. The lower esophageal sphincter normally helps prevent:
A. pancreatic secretion
B. reflux of gastric contents into the esophagus
C. entry of food into the stomach
D. bile release
Answer: B. reflux of gastric contents into the esophagus
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, Rationale: Adequate sphincter tone limits backward flow of acidic gastric contents.
10. The stomach region nearest the esophagus is the:
A. duodenum
B. cardia
C. fundus
D. pylorus
Answer: B. cardia
Rationale: The cardia surrounds the gastroesophageal entry; the pylorus is distal.
11. The dome-shaped superior portion of the stomach is the:
A. pyloric canal
B. fundus
C. cardia
D. ileum
Answer: B. fundus
Rationale: The fundus lies superior to the gastroesophageal junction and can serve as a storage region.
12. The pyloric sphincter regulates movement of chyme into the:
A. duodenum
B. esophagus
C. cecum
D. jejunum directly
Answer: A. duodenum
Rationale: The pylorus meters gastric contents into the first segment of the small intestine, the duodenum.
13. Parietal cells in the stomach secrete:
A. bile
B. pepsinogen and gastric lipase only
C. hydrochloric acid and intrinsic factor
D. pancreatic bicarbonate
Answer: C. hydrochloric acid and intrinsic factor
Rationale: Parietal cells acidify gastric contents and produce intrinsic factor required for vitamin B12
absorption.
14. Chief cells primarily secrete:
A. bile salts
B. pepsinogen
C. hydrochloric acid
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