Which enzyme primarily digests carbohydrates and is secreted by the exocrine pancreas?

• A. Amylase
• B. Secretin
• C. Lipase
• D. Trypsin

Answer: (A)

Carbohydrate digestion in the small intestine is driven by pancreatic amylase, an enzyme secreted by the exocrine pancreas into the pancreatic juice. It hydrolyzes starches into maltose and other small sugars, working best in the alkaline environment provided by bicarbonate in the duodenum. Carbohydrate digestion does begin in the mouth with salivary amylase, but the pancreas provides the major enzyme for this task in the small intestine. The other options do not digest carbohydrates: secretin is a hormone that stimulates bicarbonate release, lipase digests fats, and trypsin digests proteins (being secreted as a zymogen and activated in the intestine).