Module 2: Pituitary Glands Flashcards
major controlling participant in the endocrine system
pituitary gland
Master gland of the body
Pituitary gland
produces only closely related steroids
adrenal cortex
pituitary gland produces
many polypeptide hormones ranging from small peptides to large full-fledged proteins, like;
✓ luteinizing hormone (LH)
✓ follicle-stimulating hormone(FSH)
✓ prolactin
✓ growth hormone
pituitary gland is also called
hypophysis
ventral to the brain in a dorsal concavity of the sphenoid bone
sella turcica or hypophyseal fossa
a tough fibrous membrane lining the sella turcica
and forming the outer layer of the brain
dura mater
Anatomical subdivision of the pituitary gland
✓ adenohypophysis (anterior pituitary)
✓ neurohypophysis (posterior pituitary)
3 parts of adenohypophysis
✓ the pars distalis
✓ the pars tuberalis
✓ the pars intermedia
largest part of the adenohypophysis
the pars distalis
pars distalis contains five populations
of cells;
(i) thyrotropes
(ii) gonadotropes
(iii) lactotropes
(iv)
corticotropes
(v) somatotropes
which secrete the “tropic” hormones that regulate function of other endocrine glands
Corticotropes
which regulate other nonendocrine organs and tissues
somatotropes
Tropic hormones are?
✓ thyrotropin or thyroid-stimulating hor-
mone (TSH)
✓ luteinizing hormone (LH)
✓ follicle-stimulating hormone
(FSH)
✓ prolactin, adrenocorticotropin
(ACTH)
✓ growth hormone (GH) or
somatotropin (STH)
an upward
extension of the adenohypophysis
and is attached to the infundibulum
pars tuberalis
forms the
junction between the pars distalis
and pars nervosa and is the source
of melanocyte-stimulating hormone (MSH), particularly important in amphibians in regulating
skin pigmentation
pars intermedia
Two parts of the neurohypophysis:
- the infundibulum or pituitary stalk
- the pars nervosa (also called posterior or neural lobe) .
