BIOA02H3 Lecture 3: 3-The Endocrine system
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BIOA02H3 Full Course Notes
Verified Note
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Document Summary
The endocrine system: the major human endocrine glands and hormones melatonin produced by the pineal gland. It requires darkness in order to be produced; even the small amount of light emitted by a phone can be sufficient to prevent melatonin production and therefore hinder sleep. Melatonin supplements can be effective in helping treat insomnia but need to be taken in a certain window before you wish to fall asleep and are most effective when it is dark. Circulating hormones are synthesised within and released from endocrine cells within an endocrine gland. They diffuse through the extracellular fluid, enter the blood and are transported to target tissues where they bind hormone receptors (on the target cell"s plasma membrane or within the target cell. This trigger a physiological response such as the opening or closing of an ion channel or the activation of a second messenger pathway.
