Overview
An amylase is an enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of starch (Latin amylum) into sugars. Amylase is present in the saliva of humans and some other mammals, where it begins the chemical process of digestion. Foods that contain large amounts of starch but little sugar, such as rice and potatoes, may acquire a slightly sweet taste as they are chewed because amylase degrades some of their starch into sugar. The pancreas and salivary gland make amylase (alpha amylase) to hydrolyse dietary starch into disaccharides and trisaccharides which are converted by other enzymes to glucose to supply the body with energy. Plants and some bacteria also produce amylase. Specific amylase proteins are designated by different Greek letters. All amylases are glycoside hydrolases and act on a-1,4-glycosidic bonds.Amylases are a group of enzymes that hydrolyze starch. Many enzymes act on starch or on the oligosaccharides derived from them. Nineteen enzymes have been classified as belonging to the microbial amylase group: hydrolases (EC 3) such as a-amylase, ß-amylase, glucoamylase, a-glucosidase, debranching enzymes and transferases (EC 2) such as CGTase, 4-a-glucanotransferase, and a branching enzyme.
What Is an Amylase Test?
If your doctor thinks something could be wrong with your pancreas -- the organ in your belly that helps you digest food -- she may do an amylase test. Amylase is a protein made by your pancreas and by glands in and around your mouth and throat. It helps you break down carbohydrates and starches into sugar.It’s normal to have some amylase in your blood. But too much of it could mean one of the ducts (tubes) in your pancreas is blocked or injured.Symptoms of this may include Belly pain -- usually around your navel -- that doesn’t go away,Fever,Loss of appetite or Nausea.Enzymes are proteins produced by the body to do a particular job. The pancreas produces amylase to break down carbohydrates in food into simple sugars. The pancreas makes lipase to digest fats into fatty acids. Sugars and fatty acids can then be absorbed by the small intestine. Some amylase and lipase can be found in saliva and in the stomach. However, most of the enzymes made in the pancreas are released into the small intestine.In a healthy individual, a normal blood amylase level is around 23-85 units per liter (U/L), although some lab ranges for normal amylase go up to 140 U/L.A normal lipase level can range from 0-160 U/L depending on the lab.When the pancreas is damaged, these digestive enzymes can be found in the blood at higher levels than normal. Amylase or lipase results more than three times normal levels are likely to mean pancreatitis or damage to your pancreas. However, in rare cases, there can be significant damage to the pancreas without abnormal amylase or lipase levels.
What is the use of Amylase Test?
An amylase blood test is used to diagnose or monitor a problem with your pancreas, including pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas. An amylase urine test may be ordered along with or after an amylase blood test. Urine amylase results can help diagnose pancreatic and salivary gland disorders. One or both types of tests may be used to help monitor amylase levels in people who are being treated for pancreatic or other disorders.The major sources of amylase are the pancreas and the salivary glands. The most common cause of elevation of serum amylase is inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis). In acute pancreatitis, serum amylase begins to rise within 6-24 hours, remains elevated for a few days and returns to normal in 3-7 days. Other causes of elevated serum amylase are inflammation of salivary glands (mumps), biliary tract disease and bowel obstruction. Elevated serum amylase can also be seen with drugs (e.g., morphine) which constrict the pancreatic duct sphincter preventing excretion of amylase into the intestine.Looking for drug test labs near me?. Use Tuhealthy app to find titers vaccination.
