endocrine testing Flashcards
describe endocrine glands
they are ductless glands who secrete hormones into the blood for systemic circulation
endocrine glands are controlled by
feedback loops
example of an exocrine gland
salivary glands
what types of stimulus are a part of endocrine gland regulation
Humoral, neural and hormonal
humeral stimulus example
when there is a low concentration of Calcium in the capillary blood the parathyroid glans respond but secrete PTH which increases blood calcium
what is a humoral stimulus
hormone release causes by alter level of certain critical ions of nutrients
what is a neural stimulus
hormone release caused by a neural input
neural stimulus example
action potentials in preganglionic sympathetic fibers to the adrenal medulla and then the adrenal medulla responses by secreting epinephrine and norepinephrine
what is a hormonal stimulus
hormone release cause by another hormone
a tropic hormone
hormonal stimulus
hormones from hypothalamus causes the APG to secrete hormones that stimulate other endocrine glands to secrete hormones as a response
which hormones is responsible for regulating body ttemp
TRH
how do hormone circulate
both free and bound to plasma proteins
Binding helps to increase the half-life of the hormone in the circulation
Hormones bound to transport proteins serve as reservoirs, replenishing the concentration of free hormones when they are bound to target tissue receptors or cleared from the circulation
levels of ______-______ ______ are subject to hormone regulation and can vary with age disease Staes and certain drug therapies
plasma-binding proteins
plasma-binding proteins examples
CBG (cortisol binding globulin), SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin) and TBG (thyroid binding globulin)
free hormones generally represent the
fraction available for binding to the receptors, or the active hormone
free hormones dictate
the magnitude of feedback inhibition that that controls hormone relase
free hormone is also the fraction
that is cleared from the circulation
Would you just order a TSH test in the clinic
no you would prefer to order the TSH AND free T3/T4 because a free hormone test is ideal for current health status (clinical states, hormone excess and deficiency)
shorter half life in hormones
Certain hormones are secreted in a more pulsatile/episodic manner and have shorter half lives
This leads to the need to measure hormones at particular times of the day or to rely on 24 hour collection methods
using circadian rhythms of hormones help us
determine when to order that the hormone levels are checked
for instance we should order ACTH and Cortisol levels in the morning because they are the highest around 6 am
hormone secretion rates
The secretion rates of many (not all) hormones rhythmically fluctuate up and down as a function of time
basal sectarian of hormones
Basal secretion of most hormones is not a continuous process but rather has a pulsatile nature
circhoral
episodic release of about an hour
ultradian
episodic release long than and hours but less than 24 hours
circadian
episodic release approximately every 24 hours
e.g release of ACTH and Cortisol to wake up
diurnal
episodic activity expressed at defined periods of the day
primary disease– endocrine dysfunction
involves the organs the produce the hormone
secondary endocrine dysfunction
related to the pituitary gland which produces trophic hormones
primary disease– endocrine dysfunction example
primary hypothyroidism results from an underactive thyroid gland and ↓ T4
secondary disease– endocrine dysfunction example
secondary hypothyroidism is due to an underactive anterior pituitary which secondarily ↓ thyroid function owing to ↓ TSH and subsequent ↓ T4
Tertiary Disease – endocrine dysfunction example
tertiary hypothyroidism due to ↓ release of TRH which ↓ TSH which ↓ synthesis of T4
Tertiary Disease – endocrine dysfunction
hypothalamic problems
Endocrine Hypofunction
diminished production and secretion of hormones
primary deficiency disorders
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
Addison’s disease
Type 1 DM
the endocrines trophic (stimulating) hormone is actually elevated due to it normal feedback responses
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis -the thyroid gland is under active and T4 is not being produced in regular amounts so it is unable to perform properly in the negative feedback loop and therefore more and more TSH is produced