A human duodenum model (HDM) to study transport and digestion of intestinal contents

•A artificial human duodenum model (HDM) was developed.•HDM has incorporated segmentation function and sigmoidal shape.•Intestinal transit time and permeability were investigated as affected by various factors.•Segmentation is critical for efficient digestion.•Ascending and descending sections affect intestinal transit and digestion of food.

The objective of this study was to develop a Human Duodenal Model (HDM) which mimics the actual geometry of human duodenum intestine, with a sigmoidal shape containing ascending and descending sections. Segmentation motion was incorporated by using a series of stainless steel contraction rings with attached rubber finger cots to compress and decompress dialysis membrane tube driven by compressed air and vacuum. Perfusion trials using methylene blue (MB) solution was conducted in HDM to study the effective permeability of intestine, and the propagation rates of simulated digesta in the membrane tube, as affected by segmentation, model orientation, flow rate, temperature and viscosity. HDM was also used to study starch digestion in which glucose content was measured as an indicator of digestion efficiency. The results indicate that segmentation is critical for efficient food digestion, and the ascending and descending sections of intestine are important decreasing the transit rate and retaining large particles for complete digestion. The HDM is useful to simulate intestinal digestion providing valuable insights in the mechanisms involved in nutrient transport and absorption.