Introduction to endocrinology

Question 1

How does the endocrine system communicate between organs?

Answer 1

Via hormones

Question 2

What are the 2 broad types of endocrine organs in the body?

Answer 2

Primary and secondary?

Question 3

What are the primary organs (11)?

Answer 3

Their primary function is the secretion of hormones:
	Pineal gland 
	Hypothalamus 
	Pituitary gland 
	Thyroid gland 
	Parathyroid glands
	Thymus
	Adrenal gland
	Pancreas
	Ovaries (female)
	Testes (male)
	Placenta

Question 4

What are the secondary organs (7)?

Answer 4

They have a non-endocrine primary function:
	Heart 
	Stomach
	Liver 
	Kidney 
	Small intestine 
	Skin
	Fat

Question 5

What is the pituitary gland separated into?

Answer 5

Anterior and Posterior pituitary. They are physically connected but have different functions

Question 6

What does the hypothalamus do?

Answer 6

Sense environmental changes and produce many regulatory hormones which control the function of other endocrine glands

Question 7

What does the pineal gland produce?

Answer 7

Melatonin - and helps to regulate circadian rhythm

Question 8

Where is the thyroid gland?

Answer 8

Neck region below the larynx, sitting above and around the trachea

Question 9

What does the thyroid gland produce?

Answer 9

T3 and T4 hormones which help regulate metabolism, also produces the hormone calcitonin which is involved in calcium metabolism regulation

Question 10

What does the parathyroid gland produce?

Answer 10

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) - if calcium levels have dropped PTH is released

Question 11

Where is the Thymus?

Answer 11

Lies close to the heart

Question 12

What is the thymus critical for?

Answer 12

Immune function because T-lymphocytes mature in the thymus

Question 13

What does the thymus produce?

Answer 13

Produces the peptide hormone THYMOSIN, which stimulated the activity of T cells and antibody production in bone marrow (t lymphocyte lineage)

Question 14

Where are the islets of langerhans?

Answer 14

In the pancreas

Question 15

What is the endocrine function of the islets of langerhans?

Answer 15

To produce several important hormones (5):
o	 Insulin
o	 Glucagon
o	 Somatostatin
o	 Ghrelin – hunger hormone 
o	 pancreatic polypeptide

Question 16

What are the 3 broad groups of endocrine disorders?

Answer 16

1) hyposecretion
2) hypersecretion
3) Tumours develop in the endocrine glands

Question 17

What is hyposecretion? + examples

Answer 17

When a gland does not produce enough hormones:
o Type 1 diabetes (no insulin produced)
o Hypothyroidism
o Type 2 diabetes (can’t produce enough insulin)

Question 18

What is hypersecretion ? + examples

Answer 18

When a gland produces too much of it’s hormone:
o Addison’s disease – adrenal cortex
o Hyperinsulinism
o Cushing’s disease
o Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia – baby can’t produce cortisol
o Graves disease

Question 19

What tumour related disorders are there?

Answer 19

o Multiple endocrine neoplasia

o Pheochromocytoma – in the medulla

Question 20

Explain the cortisol negative feedback loop

Answer 20

• Hypothalamus produces Corticotropin releasing hormone is you are stressed
o Then stimulates anterior pituitary which releases Adrenocorticotropic hormone
• Adrenal cortex then produces cortisol
• Cortisol has a negative feedback loop – to make sure there isn’t too high levels of cortisol being produced