PHAC 4001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Portal Venous System, Pituitary Gland, Anterior Pituitary
12 May 2021
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Phac 4001 lecture 22 march 12, 2021 pituitary and gonadal hormones i. The pituitary gland is considered as the master endocrine gland in the body. It rests at the base of the brain ( hypophysis ) Connected to the hypothalamus by a stalk of neurosecretory fibers and blood vessels. Posterior pituitary does not have the capacity to secrete any hormone but it does store the nerve endings coming from the hypothalamus and these neurosecretory fibers do secrete adh and vasopressin. Hypothalamic-hypophyseal axis: hypothalamic neurosecretory cells produce various releasing or inhibitory hormones, these neurosecretory cells have cell bodies in the hypothalamus but also sent their projections down to the ap and pp. Portal venous system carries these hormones to the anterior pituitary lobe. These peptides can either stimulate or inhibit the release of hormones from the ap: there are several cell types located within the ap. In the em, we can see dark, secretory granules in somatotropes 2, 5 and 11.
