This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Glucose absorption

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Carbohydrate absorption tends to occur at the small intestine brush border:

  • fructose:
    • absorbed passively down a concentration gradient
    • binds to a specific carrier protein in the apical cell membrane
    • either:
      • diffuses passively out of cells and into capillaries
      • forms lactate which then diffuses into portal blood

  • glucose:
    • absorbed mainly in jejunum by active process
    • enters via a co-transporter protein on the apical side of the enterocyte
    • co-transporter requires presence of sodium ions
    • sodium ions pass down electrochemical gradient into cell to replace sodium ions which are actively being transported out of cell on basolateral membrane by Na+/K+ ATPase pump
    • glucose diffuses out of cell into intercellular space and from there to local capillaries
    • chloride ions and water accompany the movement of sodium and glucose; they may travel through the cell or through the intercellular space

  • galactose: absorbed by a similar sodium-dependent co-transporter as glucose

The dependence of water and salt absorption on the absorption of glucose is the reason why oral rehydration solutions contain all three components.


Create an account to add page annotations

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.