Pituitary gland control

Tuberoinfundibular tract Projects from the hypothalamus to the anterior pituitary gland. Controls prolactin secretion. Hypoactivity implicated in breast enlargement, milk production, and other side effects caused by many antipsychotic medications. 

In an experiment to determine whether the pituitary gland controls the production of those chemical signals present in female mouse urine which are responsible for LH release in males and the attractiveness of this urine to males, Johnston and Bronson 278) concluded that there are at least two distinct odors in female urine. The first is dependent on the pituitary and provokes LH release in males, while the second is dependent on the ovary and attracts males. 

Brain structure below the thalamus and main portion of the ventral region of the diencephalon, controlling homeostatic and nonhomeostatic basic body and brain functions, including circadian and feeding rhythms, energy metabolism, thermogenesis, sympathoadrenal, and neuroendocrine outflow (secretion of hormones by the pituitary gland), behavioral state and memory functions. 

A further totally separate DA pathway arises from A12 in the arcuate nucleus and forms the tuberoinfundibular tract in the median eminence to the pituitary gland for controlling prolactin release. This is partly achieved by DA being released into capillaries of the hypothalamic-hypophyseal portal system and then inhibiting the prolactin releasing cells (lactotrophs) of the anterior pituitary. 

Adrenal hormone production is controlled by the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is secreted by the hypothalamus and stimulates secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), also known as corticotropin from the anterior pituitary. ACTH, in turn, stimulates the adrenal cortex to produce cortisol. When sufficient or excessive cortisol levels are reached, a negative feedback is exerted on the secretion of CRH and ACTH, thereby decreasing overall cortisol production. The control of adrenal androgen synthesis also follows a similar negative-feedback mechanism. 

Prolactin is an essential hormone for normal production of breast milk following childbirth. It also plays a pivotal role in a variety of reproductive functions. Prolactin is regulated primarily by the hypothalamus-pituitary axis and secreted solely by the lactotroph cells of the anterior pituitary gland. Under normal conditions, secretion of prolactin is predominantly under inhibitory control by dopamine and acts on the D2 receptors located on the lactotroph cells. Increase of hypothalamic thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) in primary hypothyroidism can stimulate the release of prolactin. 

Adrenocorticotropic hormone A hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary that controls secretion of cortisol from the adrenal glands also referred to as corticotropin. 

In order to make adjustments in the water load, the reabsorption of the remaining 20% of the filtered water from the distal tubule and the collecting duct is physiologically controlled by antidiuretic hormone (ADH), also referred to as vasopressin. Antidiuretic hormone, synthesized in the hypothalamus and released from the neurohypophysis of the pituitary gland, promotes the... 

Hormones have a profound effect on carbohydrate metabolism. Great interest has been aroused by reports of hormonal control of hexokinase activity by specific proteins in animal tissues.99- 100 Hexokinase action is the rate-limiting step in the uptake of D-glucose by muscle. Hexokinase is inhibited in diabetic muscle, but the inhibition can be partially reversed by insulin. A protein fraction from the anterior pituitary gland will inhibit the hexokinase of extracts of brain and muscle, and the effect of this... 

While these steroids directly regulate sexual function, their synthesis and release are, in turn, controlled by gonadotropins — polypeptide hormones produced by the pituitary gland. The biology and medical applications of the gonadotropins are outlined in Chapter 8. Sex hormones produced naturally may be classified into one of three groups ... 

The thyroid gland produces thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) and this production is under control of the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. 

Most of the serotonin in the brain is in the brainstem, specifically in the raphe nuclei considerable amounts also are present in areas of the hypothalamus, the limbic system, and the pituitary gland. Current evidence indicates that serotonin is involved in the regulation of several aspects of behavior, including sleep, pain perception, depression, sexual activity, and aggressiveness. Some of the most important antidepressant agents are believed to prevent the reuptake of serotonin (see Chapter 33). Serotonin also may be involved in temperature regulation and in the hypothalamic control of the release of pituitary hormones. 

The hormones of the pituitary gland participate in the control of reproductive function, body growth, and cellular metabolism deficiency or overproduction of these hormones disrupts this control. Clinical use of protein hormones in the past was limited because preparations had to come from glands or urine. The ability to prepare at least some of these hormones in large quantities by recombinant DNA techniques and the development of more stable analogues that can be injected in a depot form permit increased and more effective use of these hormones. 

Transcortin acts as a reservoir from which a constant supply of unbound cortisol may be provided to target cells. In addition, when serum albumin levels are low, less circulating cortisol becomes bound, which yields a greater physiological effect. Not only does protein binding control the amount of biologically active cortisol available, but it also reduces the rate at which steroids are cleared from the blood and thus limits steroid suppression of corticotrophin release from the pituitary gland. 

Since the synthesis and release of cortisol are regulated by pituitary corticotrophin, removal of the pituitary gland results in decreased function and eventual atrophy of the zona fasciculata and zona reticularis. Infusion of supraphysiological concentrations of cortisol will suppress corticotrophin secretion from the pituitary and wUl markedly decrease circulating corticotrophin levels. This occurrence implies a negative feedback control for corticotrophin and corticosteroid release (Fig. 60.3). 

The control of metabolism, growth, and reproduction is mediated by a combination of neural and endocrine systems located in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. The pituitary weighs about 0.6 g and rests at the base of the brain in the bony sella turcica near the optic chiasm and the cavernous sinuses. The pituitary consists of an anterior lobe (adenohypophysis) and a posterior lobe (neurohypophysis) (Figure 37-1). It is connected to the overlying hypothalamus... 

Control of thyroid function via thyroid-pituitary feedback is also discussed in Chapter 37. Briefly, hypothalamic cells secrete thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) (Figure 38-3). TRH is secreted into capillaries of the pituitary portal venous system, and in the pituitary gland, TRH stimulates the synthesis and release of thyrotropin (thyroid-stimulating hormoneTSH). TSH in turn stimulates an adenylyl cyclase-mediated mechanism in the thyroid cell to increase the synthesis and release of T4 and T3. These thyroid hormones act in a negative feedback fashion in the pituitary to block the action of TRH and in the hypothalamus to inhibit the synthesis and secretion of TRH. Other hormones or drugs may also affect the release of TRH or TSH. 

However, the control of metabolism appears to be more complicated than this as it also involves the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. It seems that the male hypothalamus produces a factor, which inhibits the release of a hormone and which therefore leaves the liver in a particular male state. In the female, the hypothalamus is inactive, and therefore produces no factor, and hence the pituitary releases a feminizing factor (possibly growth hormone), which changes the liver to the female state. 

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