Accessory organs

The liver

The liver is a large, meaty organ that sits on the right side of the belly. Weighing about 3 pounds, the liver is reddish-brown in color and feels rubbery to the touch. Normally you can't feel the liver, because it's protected by the rib cage.

T he liver has two large sections, called the right and the left lobes. The gallbladder sits under the liver, along with parts of the pancreas and intestines. The liver and these organs work together to digest, absorb, and process food.

The liver's main job is to filter the blood coming from the digestive tract, before passing it to the rest of the body. The liver also detoxifies chemicals and metabolizes drugs. As it does so, the liver secretes bile that ends up back in the intestines. The liver also makes proteins important for blood clotting and other functions.

The gallbladder

The gallbladder, which is also known as the cholecyst, is a small organ that is present in the abdominal cavity. The gallbladder is a hollow organ that sits in a concave cavity just outside the liver, which is known as the gallbladder fossa. The gallbladder is divided into three parts - the fundus, the body and the neck.. When full, the gallbladder can hold up to 50 ml of bile at a time.

The function of the gallbladder is to store and concentrate bile. Bile is a digestive liquid that is secreted in the liver. This bile is an essential digestive fluid, as it contains anions of the bile acids.

The pancreas

The pancreas is a gland organ that is located in the abdomen. It is a part of the digestive system and produces important enzymes and hormones that help break down foods. The pancreas has an endocrine function because it releases juices directly into the bloodstream, and it has an exocrine function because it releases juices into ducts.

Enzymes, or digestive juices, produced by the pancreas are secreted into the small intestine to further breaking down food after it has left the stomach. The gland also produces the hormone insulin and secretes it into the bloodstream in order to regulate the body's glucose or sugar level.

	liver	печінка
	meaty organ	м‘ясистий орган
	belly	черево
	rib cage	грудна клітка
	lobe	доля, частина
	gallblabber	жовчний міхур
	abdominal cavity	черевна порожнина
	concave cavity	вгнута порожнина
	bile duct	жовчна протока
	pancreas	підшлункова залоза
	gland organ	залозистий орган
	digestive system	травана система
	enzyme	фермент