Endocrine Histology Flashcards
What is prostaglandin a derivative of?
arachidonic acid
T or F. Binding of hormones to carrier proteins for transport in the circulatory system protects the hormones and increases longevity
T
What two primordial germ layers make up the pituitary gland?
ectoderm and neuroectoderm
How is the anterior pouch of the pituitary gland formed?
Early in gestation a finger of ectoderm, called Rathe’s pouch, grows upward from the roof of the mouth to become the anterior lobe
How is the posterior pouch of the pituitary gland formed?
forms from a downward extension of the brain during gestation
The anterior lobe is aka?
adenohypophysis (adeno=glanular)
The posterior lobe is aka?
neurohypophysis
What are the two parts of the posterior lobe of the pituitary?
infundibulum and pars nervosa
What are the three parts of the anterior lobe of the pituitary?
pars distalis, pars intermedia, and pars tuberalis (wraps around the infundibulum)
What are the main contents of the pars nervosa?
neurosecretory fibers from the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei
What hormone does the supraoptic nucleus secrete?
oxytocin
What hormone does the paraventricular nucleus secrete?
anti-duretic hormone (aka vasopressin)
What does oxytocin do?
stimulates contraction of smooth muscle in pregnant uterus and myoepithelial cells in the mammary gland
What does vasopressin do?
regulates the body’s retention of water by acting to increase water reabsorption in the kidney’s collecting ducts by inducing translocation of aquaporin-CD water channels in the plasma membrane of collecting duct cells
Inadequate levels of vasopressin can result in what?
diabetes insipidus
How does release of oxytocin and vasopressin from the pituitary nuclei of the posterior lobe work?
the supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei release their hormones down the hypothalamohypophyseal track to a fenestrated capillary bed located in the posterior lobe
Are pituitary hormones released continuously or in a spurt-like manner?
spurts
What are Herring bodies and where are they found?
structures found in the posterior pituitary. They represent the terminal end of the axons from the hypothalamus, and hormones are temporarily stored in these locations. They are neurosecretory terminals.
surrounded by putuicytes
What is the main role of pituicytes in the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland?
assist in the storage and release of neurohypophysial hormones.
What are the cell types in the pars distalis?
1) acidophils,
2) basophils, and
3) chromophobes (=’color fearing’)
What do basophils in the anterior pituitary secrete?
trophic (‘nourishing’) hormones that regulate the activity of other endocrine glands
What are the main basophils of the anterior pituitary?
1) gonadotropes
2) thyrotropes
3) corticotropes
What do gonadotropes secrete?
FSH and LH or ICSH (interstitial cell-simulating hormone)
What does FSH do?
stimulates follicular development in the ovary and spermatogenesis in the testis
What do thryotropes secrete?
TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone)
What does TSH do?
stimulates the thyroid gland to produce thyroxine (T4), and then triiodothyronine (T3) which stimulates the metabolism of almost every tissue in the body. Also stimulates growth of thyroid epithelial cells
It is a glycoprotein hormone
What do corticotropes secrete?
ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)
What is the main effect of ACTH?
stimulates secretion of glucocorticoids in adrenal gland cortex
What do acidophils in the anterior pituitary secrete?
growth hormones that act directly on target organs that are not endocrine in nature
What are the main acidophils of the anterior pituitary and what do they secrete?
1) somatotropes- GH
2) lactotropes- PRL (prolactin)
What does GH do?
stimulates body growth- increase liver and other organ synthesis and secretion of insulin-like growth factor (OGF-1), which in turn stimulates division of progenitor cells located in growth plates and in skeletal muscle
What does prolactin do?
1) promotes mammary gland development,
2) initiates milk formation,
3) stimulates and maintains secretion of casein, lipids and carbs in milk
What is the distribution of hormone secretion in the pars distalis of the pituitary gland?
FSH- 5% LH- 10% TSH- 10% ACTH- 15-20% GH- 50% PRL- 15-20%
Describe the blood supply of the pituitary gland
Blood comes from two sources. Near the infundibulum, the internal carotid artery gives off a superior hypophyseal artery which continues into a capillary bed of the median eminence and infundibulum. This capillary bed drains to hypophyseal portal veins that run down the infundibulum/pars tuberalis to the anterior and posterior lobes where they drain into a capillary bed in the pars distalis (and posterior lobe?). Also in the lobes, additional oxygenated blood is brought in from inferior hypophyseal arteries that also drain to these capillary beds. All deoxygenated blood then drains from the pituitary in hypophyseal veins located in the anterior and posterior lobes