Redbud trees belong to the genus Cercis, which includes deciduous trees from North America, Asia and the Mediterranean area. The leaves on redbuds are heart-shaped and produce fiery fall colors in red and yellow. The flowers are typically bright and range from pale pink to purple and magenta.
Digestion of starch and other carbohydrates begins in the mouth with an enzyme called salivary amylase.
Digestive enzymes are diverse and are found in the saliva secreted by the salivary glands, in the stomach secreted by cells lining the stomach, in the pancreatic juice secreted by pancreatic exocrine cells, and in the intestinal (small and large) secretions, or as part of the lining of the gastrointestinal tract. Pepsinogen is then activated by the stomach acid into its active form, pepsin. 2  Pepsin breaks down the protein in the food into smaller particles, such as peptide fragments and amino acids. 3  Protein digestion, therefore, first starts in the stomach, unlike carbohydrate and lipids, which start their digestion in the mouth.