Endocrinology (from Greek , endo, "within"; , krn, "to separate"; and -, -logia) is a

branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific
secretions called hormones, the integration of developmental events proliferation, growth, and
differentiation (including histogenesis and organogenesis) and the coordination
of metabolism, respiration, excretion, movement, reproduction, andsensory perception depend on
chemical cues, substances synthesized and secreted by specialized cells.
Endocrinology is concerned with study of the biosynthesis, storage, chemistry, biochemical and
physiological function of hormones and with the cells of the endocrine glands and tissues that secrete
them.
The endocrine system consists of several glands, all in different parts of the body, that secrete
hormones directly into the blood rather than into a duct system. Hormones have many different
functions and modes of action; one hormone may have several effects on different target organs, and,
conversely, one target organ may be affected by more than one hormone.
In the original 1902 definition by Bayliss and Starling (see below), they specified that, to be classified
as a hormone, a chemical must be produced by an organ, be released (in small amounts) into the
blood, and be transported by the blood to a distant organ to exert its specific function. This definition
holds for most "classical" hormones, but there are also paracrine mechanisms (chemical
communication between cells within a tissue or organ), autocrine signals (a chemical that acts on the
same cell), and intracrine signals (a chemical that acts within the same
[1]
cell). Aneuroendocrine signal is a "classical" hormone that is released into the blood by a
neurosecretory neuron (see article on neuroendocrinology).
Hormones act by binding to specific receptors in the target organ. As Baulieu notes, a receptor has at
least two basic constituents:

a recognition site, to which the hormone binds; and

an effector site, which precipitates the modification of cellular function.

[2]

Between these is a "transduction mechanism" in which hormone binding induces allosteric

modification that, in turn, produces the appropriate response.
Contents
[hide]

1 Chemical classes of hormones

1.1 Amines

1.2 Peptide and protein

1.3 Steroid

2 History and key discoveries of endocrinology

3 Endocrinology as a profession

3.1 Work

3.2 Training

3.3 Professional organizations

4 Patient education

5 Diseases

6 In popular culture

7 See also

8 References

9 External links

9.1 Societies and associations

Chemical classes of hormones[edit]

Norepinephrine

Triiodothyronine
Examples of amine hormones

Cortisol

Vitamin D3
Examples of steroid hormones

Griffin and Ojeda identify three different classes of hormone based on their chemical composition:

[3]

Amines[edit]
Amines, such as norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine, are derived from single amino acids, in
this case tyrosine. Thyroid hormones such as 3,5,3-triiodothyronine (T3) and 3,5,3,5tetraiodothyronine (thyroxine, T4) make up a subset of this class because they derive from the
combination of two iodinated tyrosine amino acid residues.

Peptide and protein[edit]

Peptide hormones and protein hormones consist of three (in the case of thyrotropin-releasing
hormone) to more than 200 (in the case offollicle-stimulating hormone) amino acid residues and can
have a molecular mass as large as 30,000 grams per mole. All hormones secreted by the pituitary
gland are peptide hormones, as are leptin from adipocytes, ghrelin from the stomach, and insulin from
thepancreas.

Steroid[edit]
Steroid hormones are converted from their parent compound, cholesterol. Mammalian steroid
hormones can be grouped into five groups by the receptors to which they
bind: glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, androgens, estrogens, and progestogens. Some forms
ofvitamin D, such as calcitriol, are also considered to be steroid hormones.

History and key discoveries of endocrinology[edit]

This section may contain inappropriate or misinterpreted citations that do
not verify the text.Please help improve this article by checking for
inaccuracies. (help, talk, get involved!) (September 2010)

Arnold Berthold is known as a pioneer in endocrinology

[4]

According to Robert K. G. Temple, the study of endocrinology began in China. The Chinese were
isolating sex and pituitary hormones from human urine and using them for medicinal purposes by 200
[4]
[4]
BCE. They used many complex methods, such as sublimation of steroid hormones. Another
method specified by Chinese textsthe earliest dating to 1110specified the use of saponin (from
the beans of Gleditschia sinensis) to extract hormones, but gypsum (containing calcium sulfate) was
[4]
also known to have been used. Eventually, in 1849, when Arnold Berthold noted that castrated
[5]
cockerels did not develop combs and wattles or exhibit overtly male behaviour, modern
[citation needed]
endocrinology began.
He found that replacement of testes back into the abdominal cavity
of the same bird or another castrated bird resulted in normal behavioural and morphological
development, and he concluded (erroneously) that the testes secreted a substance that "conditioned"
the blood that, in turn, acted on the body of the cockerel. In fact, one of two other things could have
been true: that the testes modified or activated a constituent of the blood or that the testes removed
an inhibitory factor from the blood. It was not proven that the testes released a substance that
engenders male characteristics until it was shown that the extract of testes could replace their
[6]
function in castrated animals. Pure, crystalline testosterone was isolated in 1938.

Although most of the relevant tissues and endocrine glands had been identified by early anatomists, a
more humoral approach to understanding biological function and disease was favoured by the ancient
Greek and Roman thinkers such as Aristotle, Hippocrates, Lucretius, Celsus, and Galen, according to
[7]
Freeman et al., and these theories held sway until the advent of germ theory, physiology, and organ
basis of pathology in the 19th century.
According to Iranian author Nabipour I., in medieval Persia, Avicenna (980-1037) provided a detailed
account on diabetes mellitus in The Canon of Medicine (c. 1025), "describing the abnormal appetite
and the collapse of sexual functions and he documented the sweet taste of diabetic urine."
Like Aretaeus of Cappadocia before him, Avicenna recognized a primary and secondary diabetes. He
also described diabetic gangrene, and treated diabetes using a mixture
of lupine, trigonella (fenugreek), and zedoary seed, which produces a considerable reduction in the
excretion of sugar, a treatment which is still prescribed in modern times. Avicenna also "described
diabetes insipidus very precisely for the first time", though it was later Johann Peter Frank (1745
[8][verification needed]
1821) who first differentiated between diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus.
According to Jan-Gustaf Ljunggren, in an article in the Swedish journal Lkartidningen (1983; No 3233), in the 12th century, Zayn al-Din al-Jurjani, another Muslim physician, provided the first
description of Graves' disease after noting the association of goitre and exophthalmos in
[9][10]
his Thesaurus of the Shah of Khwarazm, the major medical dictionary of its time.
Al-Jurjani also
[8][verification needed]
established an association between goitre and palpitation.
[11]

The Graves' disease was named after Irish doctor Robert James Graves, who described a case
of goiter with exophthalmos in 1835. The German Karl Adolph von Basedow also independently
reported the same constellation of symptoms in 1840, while earlier reports of the disease were also
published by the Italians Giuseppe Flajani and Antonio Giuseppe Testa, in 1802 and 1810
[12]
respectively, and by the English physician Caleb Hillier Parry (a friend of Edward Jenner) in the late
[13]
[14]
18th century. Thomas Addison was first to describe Addison's disease in 1849.

Thomas Addison

In 1902 William Bayliss and Ernest Starling performed an experiment in which they observed that acid
instilled into the duodenum caused the pancreas to begin secretion, even after they had removed all
[15]
nervous connections between the two. The same response could be produced by injecting extract
of jejunum mucosa into the jugular vein, showing that some factor in the mucosa was responsible.
They named this substance "secretin" and coined the term hormone for chemicals that act in this way.
Joseph von Mering and Oskar Minkowski made the observation in 1889 that removing
the pancreas surgically led to an increase in blood sugar, followed by a coma and eventual death

symptoms of diabetes mellitus. In 1922, Banting and Best realized that homogenizing the pancreas
[16]
and injecting the derived extract reversed this condition. The hormone responsible, insulin, was not
discovered until Frederick Sanger sequenced it in 1953.
[17]

Neurohormones were first identified by Otto Loewi in 1921. He incubated a frog's heart (innervated
with its vagus nerve attached) in a saline bath, and left in the solution for some time. The solution was
then used to bathe a non-innervated second heart. If the vagus nerve on the first heart was
stimulated, negative inotropic(beat amplitude) and chronotropic (beat rate) activity were seen in both
hearts. This did not occur in either heart if the vagus nerve was not stimulated. The vagus nerve was
adding something to the saline solution. The effect could be blocked using atropine, a
known inhibitor to heart vagal nerve stimulation. Clearly, something was being secreted by the vagus
nerve and affecting the heart. The "vagusstuff" (as Loewi called it) causing the myotropic (muscle
enhancing) effects was later identified to be acetylcholine and norepinephrine. Loewi won the Nobel
Prize for his discovery.
Recent work in endocrinology focuses on the molecular mechanisms responsible for triggering the
effects of hormones. The first example of such work being done was in 1962 by Earl Sutherland.
Sutherland investigated whether hormones enter cells to evoke action, or stayed outside of cells. He
studied norepinephrine, which acts on the liver to convertglycogen into glucose via the activation of
the phosphorylase enzyme. He homogenized the liver into a membrane fraction and soluble fraction
(phosphorylase is soluble), added norepinephrine to the membrane fraction, extracted its soluble
products, and added them to the first soluble fraction. Phosphorylase activated, indicating that
norepinephrine's target receptor was on the cell membrane, not located intracellularly. He later
identified the compound as cyclic AMP (cAMP) and with his discovery created the concept of secondmessenger-mediated pathways. He, like Loewi, won the Nobel Prize for his groundbreaking work in
[18]
endocrinology.

Endocrinology as a profession[edit]
Endocrinologist

Occupation

Names

Doctor, Medical specialist

Activity sectors

Medicine

Description

Education required

Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.)

Although every organ system secretes and responds to hormones (including

the brain, lungs, heart, intestine, skin, and the kidney), the clinical specialty of endocrinology focuses
primarily on the endocrine organs, meaning the organs whose primary function is hormone secretion.
These organs include the pituitary, thyroid, adrenals, ovaries, testes, and pancreas.

An endocrinologist is a physician who specializes in treating disorders of the endocrine system, such
as diabetes, hyperthyroidism, and many others (see list of diseases below).

Work[edit]
The medical specialty of endocrinology involves the diagnostic evaluation of a wide variety of
symptoms and variations and the long-term management of disorders of deficiency or excess of one
or more hormones.
The diagnosis and treatment of endocrine diseases are guided by laboratory tests to a greater extent
than for most specialties. Many diseases are investigated
through excitation/stimulation or inhibition/suppression testing. This might involve injection with a
stimulating agent to test the function of an endocrine organ. Blood is then sampled to assess the
changes of the relevant hormones or metabolites. An endocrinologist needs extensive knowledge
of clinical chemistry and biochemistry to understand the uses and limitations of the investigations.
A second important aspect of the practice of endocrinology is distinguishing human variation from
disease. Atypical patterns of physical development and abnormal test results must be assessed as
indicative of disease or not. Diagnostic imaging of endocrine organs may reveal incidental findings
called incidentalomas, which may or may not represent disease.
Endocrinology involves caring for the person as well as the disease. Most endocrine disorders
are chronic diseases that need lifelong care. Some of the most common endocrine diseases
includediabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism and the metabolic syndrome. Care of diabetes, obesity and
other chronic diseases necessitates understanding the patient at the personal and social level as well
as the molecular, and the physicianpatient relationship can be an important therapeutic process.
Apart from treating patients, many endocrinologists are involved in clinical science and medical
research, teaching, and hospital management.

Training[edit]
Endocrinologists are specialists of internal medicine or pediatrics. Reproductive endocrinologists deal
primarily with problems of fertility and menstrual functionoften training first in obstetrics. Most qualify
as an internist, pediatrician, or gynecologist for a few years before specializing, depending on the
local training system. In the U.S. and Canada, training for board certification in internal
medicine, pediatrics, or gynecology after medical school is called residency. Further formal training to
subspecialize in adult, pediatric, or reproductive endocrinology is called a fellowship. Typical training
for a North American endocrinologist involves 4 years of college, 4 years of medical school, 3 years of
residency, and 2 years of fellowship. Adult endocrinologists are board certified by the American Board
of Internal Medicine (ABIM) or the American Osteopathic Board of Internal Medicine (AOBIM) in
Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism.

Professional organizations[edit]
In North America the principal professional organizations of endocrinologists include The Endocrine
[19]
[20]
Society, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, the American Diabetes
[21]
[22]
Association, the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Society, and the American Thyroid
[23]
Association.
[24]

In the United Kingdom, the Society for Endocrinology and the British Society for Paediatric
[25]
Endocrinology and Diabetes are the main professional organisations. The European Society for
[26]
Paediatric Endocrinology is the largest international professional association dedicated solely to
paediatric endocrinology. There are numerous similar associations around the world.

Patient education[edit]
Because endocrinology encompasses so many conditions and diseases, there are many
organizations that provide education to patients and the public. The Hormone Foundation is the public
education affiliate of The Endocrine Society and provides information on all endocrine-related
conditions. Other educational organizations that focus on one or more endocrine-related conditions
include the American Diabetes Association, National Osteoporosis Foundation, Human Growth
Foundation, American Menopause Foundation, Inc., and Thyroid Foundation of America.

Diseases[edit]
See main article at Endocrine diseases
A disease due to a disorder of the endocrine system is often called a "hormone imbalance", but is
technically known as an endocrinopathy or endocrinosis. Such disease can be treated by
increasing or reducing the hormone which has become imbalanced.

In popular culture[edit]

Lisa Cuddy, a character on the television show House M.D.

Elliot Reid, a character who becomes an expert in the field in the Scrubs episode "My Way
Home"

Naomi Bennett, a character on the television show Private Practice who did her residency
in Obstetrics and Gynecology and her fellowship in Reproductive endocrinology and infertility

See also[edit]

Pediatric endocrinology

Neuroendocrinology

Reproductive endocrinology and infertility

Hormone

Hormone replacement therapy

Endocrine disease

Comparative Endocrinology

References[edit]
1.

Jump up^ Nussey S, Whitehead S (2001). Endocrinology: An Integrated Approach. Oxford: Bios
Scientific Publ. ISBN 1-85996-252-1.

2.

Jump up^ Kelly, Paul; Baulieu, Etienne-Emile (1990). Hormones: from molecules to disease.
Paris: Hermann. ISBN 2-7056-6030-5.

3.

Jump

Pediatric endocrinology
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Pediatric endocrinology (British: Paediatric) is a medical subspecialty dealing with variations of

physical growth and sexual development in childhood, as well as diabetes and other disorders of
the endocrine glands.
By age, pediatric endocrinologists, depending upon the age range of the patients they treat, care for
patients from infancy to late adolescence and young adulthood.
By disease, the most common disease of the specialty is type 1 diabetes, which usually accounts for at
least 50% of a typical clinical practice. The next most common problem is growth disorders, especially
those amenable to growth hormone treatment. Pediatric endocrinologists are usually the primary
physicians involved in the medical care of infants and children with intersexdisorders. The specialty also
deals with hypoglycemia and other forms of hyperglycemia in childhood, variations of puberty, as well
other adrenal, thyroid, and pituitary problems. Many pediatric endocrinologists have interests and expertise
in bone metabolism, lipid metabolism, adolescent gynecology, or inborn errors of metabolism.
In the United States and Canada, pediatric endocrinology is a subspecialty of the American Board of
Pediatrics or the American Osteopathic Board of Pediatrics, with board certification following fellowship
training. It is a relatively small and primarily cognitive specialty, with few procedures and an emphasis on
diagnostic evaluation.[1]
Most pediatric endocrinologists in North America and many from around the world can trace their
professional genealogy to Lawson Wilkins, who pioneered the specialty in the pediatrics department
of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the Harriet Lane Home in Baltimore in between the late 1940s
and the mid-1960s.
The principal North American professional association was originally named the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric
Endocrine Society,[2] now renamed the Pediatric Endocrine Society. Other longstanding pediatric endocrine
associations include the European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology, the British Society for Paediatric
Endocrinology, the Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group and the Japanese Society for Pediatric
Endocrinology. Professional associations of the specialty continue to proliferate.
Training for pediatric endocrinology consists of a 3 year fellowship following completion of a 3 year
pediatrics residency. The fellowship, and the specialty, are heavily research-oriented and academically
based, although less exclusively now than in past decades

Neuroendocrinology is the study of the extensive interactions between the nervous system and
the endocrine system, including the biological features of the cells that participate, and how they
functionally communicate. The nervous and endocrine systems often act together to regulate the
physiological processes of the human body. Neuroendocrinology arose from the recognition that the
brain, especially the hypothalamus, controls secretion of pituitary gland hormones, and has
subsequently expanded to investigate numerous interconnections of the endocrine and nervous
systems.
Contents
[hide]

1 Pioneers

2 Hypothalamus

3 Modern scope

4 Neuro-endocrine societies

5 Neuroendocrine journals

6 See also

7 References

Pioneers[edit]
[1]

Ernst and Berta Scharrer (1906-1995), of the University of Munich, and a professor at the Albert
Einstein College of Medicine co-founded the field of neuroendocrinology with their initial observations
and proposals concerning neuropeptides.
[2]

Geoffrey Harris (1913-1971) is considered by many to be the "father" of neuroendocrinology.

Geoffrey Harris, the Dr. Lee's Professor of Anatomy at Oxford University is credited with showing that
the anterior pituitary gland of mammals is regulated by factors secreted by hypothalamic neurons into
the hypothalamohypophysial portal circulation. By contrast, the hormones of theposterior pituitary
gland are secreted into the systemic circulation directly from the nerve endings of hypothalamic
neurons.
The first of these factors to be identified are thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) and gonadotropinreleasing hormone (GnRH). TRH is a small peptide that stimulates the secretion of thyroid-stimulating
hormone (TSH); GnRH (also called luteinising hormone-releasing hormone, LHRH) stimulates the
secretion of luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH).
[3]

Roger Guillemin, a medical student of Facult de Mdecine of Lyon and Andrew W.

Schally of Tulane University isolated these factors from the hypothalamus of sheep and pigs, and
then identified their structures. Guillemin and Schally were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology and
Medicine in 1977 for their contributions to understanding "the peptide hormone production of the
brain."
In 1952, Andor Szentivanyi of the University of South Florida and Geza Filipp wrote the world's first
[4]
research paper showing how neural control of immunity takes place through the hypothalamus.

Hypothalamus[edit]
The endocrine system consists of numerous glands throughout the body that produce and
secrete hormones of diverse chemical structure, including peptides, steroids, and neuroamines.
Collectively, hormones regulate many physiological processes.
Oxytocin and vasopressin/anti-diuretic hormone, the two peptide hormones of the posterior pituitary
gland (the neurohypophysis), are secreted from the nerve endings of magnocellularneuroendocrine
cells into the systemic circulation. The cell bodies of these oxytocin and vasopressin neurons are in
the paraventricular nucleus and supraoptic nucleus, respectively, and the electrical activity of these
neurons is regulated by afferent synaptic inputs from other brain regions. By contrast, the hormones
of the anterior pituitary gland (the adenohypophysis) are secreted from endocrine cells that, in
mammals, are not directly innervated, yet the secretion of these hormones (adrenocorticotrophic
hormone (ACTH), luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), thyroid-stimulating
hormone (TSH), prolactin and growth hormone) remains under the control of the brain. The brain

controls the anterior pituitary gland by releasing factors andrelease-inhibiting factors; these are bloodborne substances released by hypothalamic neurons into blood vessels at the base of the brain, at
the median eminence. These vessels, the hypothalamo-hypophysial portal vessels, carry the
hypothalamic factors to the adenohypophysis, where they bind to specific receptors on the surface of
the hormone-producing cells.
For example, the secretion of growth hormone is controlled by two neuroendocrine systems:
the growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) neurons and the somatostatin neurons, which
stimulate and inhibit GH secretion, respectively. The GHRH neurones are located in the arcuate
nucleus of the hypothalamus, whereas the somatostatin cells involved in growth hormone regulation
are in the periventricular nucleus. These two neuronal systems project axons to the median
eminence, where they release their peptides into portal blood vessels for transport to the anterior
pituitary. Growth hormone is secreted in pulses, which arise from alternating episodes of GHRH
release and somatostatin release, which may reflect neuronal interactions between the GHRH and
somatostatin cells, and negative feedback from growth hormone.
These systems are of great interest to both physiologists and neuroscientists for a variety of reasons.
[5]
First, neuroendocrine systems control reproduction in all its aspects, from bonding to sexual
behavior. They control spermatogenesis and the ovarian cycle, parturition, lactation, and maternal
[6]
[7]
behaviour. They control the body's response to stress and infection. They regulate the
body's metabolism, influencing eating and drinking behavior, and influence how energy intake is
[8]
[9]
utilised, that is, how fat is metabolized. They influence and regulate mood, body fluid and
[10]
[11]
electrolyte homeostasis, and blood pressure. Therefore, essential in gaining understanding of the
issues at the core of many of today's health concerns is to understand the neuroendocrine system.
Second, the neurons of the neuroendocrine system are large; they are mini factories for producing
secretory products; their nerve terminals are large and organised in coherent terminal fields; their
output can often be measured easily in the blood; and what these neurons do and what stimuli they
respond to are readily open to hypothesis and experiment. Hence, neuroendocrine neurons are good
"model systems" for studying general questions, like "how does a neuron regulate the synthesis,
packaging, and secretion of its product?" and "how is information encoded in electrical activity?"

Modern scope[edit]
Today, neuroendocrinology embraces a wide range of topics that arose directly or indirectly from the
core concept of neuroendocrine neurons. Neuroendocrine neurons control the gonads,
whosesteroids, in turn, influence the brain, as do corticosteroids secreted from the adrenal
gland under the influence of ACTH. The study of these feedbacks became the province of
neuroendocrinologists. The peptides secreted by hypothalamic neuroendocrine neurons into the
blood proved to be released also into the brain, and the central actions often appeared to complement
the peripheral actions. So understanding these central actions also became the province of
neuroendocrinologists, sometimes even when these peptides cropped up in quite different parts of the
brain that appeared to serve functions unrelated to endocrine regulation. Neuroendocrine neurons
were discovered in the peripheral nervous system, regulating, for instance, digestion. The cells in
the adrenal medulla that release adrenaline and noradrenaline proved to have properties between
endocrine cells and neurons, and proved to be outstanding model systems for instance for the study
of the molecular mechanisms of exocytosis. And these, too, have become, by
extension, neuroendocrine systems.
Neuroendocrine systems have been important to our understanding of many basic principles
[12]
in neuroscience and physiology, for instance, our understanding of stimulus-secretion coupling. The

origins and significance of patterning in neuroendocrine secretion are still dominant themes in
neuroendocrinology today.
Neuroendocrinology is also used as an integral part of understanding and treating neurobiological
brain disorders. One example is the augmentation of the treatment of mood symptoms with thyroid
[13]
hormone. Another is the finding of a Transthyretin (Thyroxine transport) problem in the
[14]
cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of some patients diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Neuro-endocrine societies[edit]

Hormone
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Hormone (disambiguation).

Epinephrine (adrenaline), acatecholamine-type hormone

A hormone (from Greek , "impetus") is a class of regulatory biochemicals produced in particular parts
of organisms by specific cells, glands, and/or tissues and then transported by the bloodstream to other
parts of the body, with the intent of influencing a variety of physiological and behavioral activities, such as
the processes of digestion, metabolism, growth, reproduction, and mood control. [1] Generally, only a small
amount of hormone is required to alter cellmetabolism. In essence, it is a chemical messenger that
transports a signal from one cell to another.[2] All multicellular organisms produce hormones; plant
hormones are also called phytohormones. Hormones in animals are often transported in the blood. Cells
respond to a hormone when they express a specificreceptor for that hormone. The hormone binds to the
receptor protein, resulting in the activation of a signal transduction mechanism that ultimately leads to cell
type-specific responses.
Endocrine hormone molecules are secreted (released) directly into the bloodstream, typically
into fenestrated capillaries. Hormones with paracrine function diffuse through the interstitial spaces to
nearby target tissues.
A variety of exogenous chemical compounds, both natural and synthetic, have hormone-like effects on both
humans and wildlife. Their interference with the synthesis, secretion, transport, binding, action, or
elimination of natural hormones in the body can change the homeostasis, reproduction, development,
and/or behavior, just as endogenouslyproduced hormones do.[3]

Contents
[hide]

1 Hormones as signals

2 Interactions with receptors

3 Physiology of hormones

4 Effects of hormones

4.1 In mammals

5 Chemical classes of hormones

6 Pharmacology

7 Important human hormones

8 See also

9 References

10 External links

Hormones as signals[edit]
See also Signal transduction.
Hormonal signaling involves the following:[citation needed]
1. Biosynthesis of a particular hormone in a particular tissue
2. Storage and secretion of the hormone
3. Transport of the hormone to the target cell(s)
4. Recognition of the hormone by an associated cell membrane or intracellular receptor protein
5. Relay and amplification of the received hormonal signal via a signal transduction process: This
then leads to a cellular response. The reaction of the target cells may then be recognized by the
original hormone-producing cells, leading to a down-regulation in hormone production. This is an
example of a homeostatic negative feedback loop.
6. Degradation of the hormone.
Hormone cells are typically of a specialized cell type, residing within a particular endocrine gland, such
as thyroid gland, ovaries, and testes. Hormones exit their cell of origin via exocytosis or another means
of membrane transport. The hierarchical model is an oversimplification of the hormonal signaling process.
Cellular recipients of a particular hormonal signal may be one of several cell types that reside within a
number of different tissues, as is the case for insulin, which triggers a diverse range of systemic
physiological effects. Different tissue types may also respond differently to the same hormonal signal.
Because of this, hormonal signaling is elaborate and hard to dissect.[citation needed]

Interactions with receptors[edit]

The left diagram shows a steroid (lipid) hormone (1) entering a cell and (2) binding to a receptor protein in the nucleus,
causing (3) mRNA synthesis which is the first step of protein synthesis. The right side shows protein hormones (1)
binding with receptors which (2) begins a transduction pathway. The transduction pathway ends (3) with transcription
factors being activated in the nucleus, and protein synthesis beginning. In both diagrams, a is the hormone, b is the cell
membrane, c is the cytoplasm, and d is the nucleus.

Most hormones initiate a cellular response by initially combining with either a specific intracellular or cell
membrane associated receptor protein. A cell may have several different receptors that recognize the
same hormone and activate different signal transduction pathways, or a cell may have several different
receptors that recognize different hormones and activate the same biochemical pathway.
For many hormones, including most protein hormones, the receptor is membrane-associated and
embedded in theplasma membrane at the surface of the cell. The interaction of hormone and receptor
typically triggers a cascade of secondary effects within the cytoplasm of the cell, often
involving phosphorylation or dephosphorylation of various other cytoplasmic proteins, changes in ion
channel permeability, or increased concentrations of intracellular molecules that may act as secondary
messengers (e.g., cyclic AMP). Some protein hormones also interact with intracellular receptors located in
the cytoplasm or nucleus by an intracrine mechanism.
For hormones such as steroid or thyroid hormones, their receptors are located intracellularly within
the cytoplasm of their target cell. To bind their receptors, these hormones must cross the cell membrane.
They can do so because they are lipid-soluble. The combined hormone-receptor complex then moves
across the nuclear membrane into the nucleus of the cell, where it binds to specific DNA sequences,
effectively amplifying or suppressing the action of certain genes, and affecting protein
synthesis.[4] However, it has been shown that not all steroid receptors are located intracellularly. Some are
associated with the plasma membrane.[5]
An important consideration, dictating the level at which cellular signal transduction pathways are activated
in response to a hormonal signal, is the effective concentration of hormone-receptor complexes that are
formed. Hormone-receptor complex concentrations are effectively determined by three factors:
1. The number of hormone molecules available for complex formation
2. The number of receptor molecules available for complex formation
3. The binding affinity between hormone and receptor.

The number of hormone molecules available for complex formation is usually the key factor in determining
the level at which signal transduction pathways are activated, the number of hormone molecules available
being determined by the concentration of circulating hormone, which is in turn influenced by the level and
rate at which they are secreted by biosynthetic cells. The number of receptors at the cell surface of the
receiving cell can also be varied, as can the affinity between the hormone and its receptor. Estrogen
metabolites generally have much lower receptor affinity than the parent hormone.

Physiology of hormones[edit]
Most cells are capable of producing one or more molecules, which act as signaling molecules to other cells,
altering their growth, function, or metabolism. The classical hormones produced by cells in the endocrine
glands mentioned so far in this article are cellular products, specialized to serve as regulators at the overall
organism level. However, they may also exert their effects solely within the tissue in which they are
produced and originally released.
The rate of hormone biosynthesis and secretion is often regulated by a homeostatic negative
feedback control mechanism. Such a mechanism depends on factors that influence
the metabolismand excretion of hormones. Thus, higher hormone concentration alone cannot trigger the
negative feedback mechanism. Negative feedback must be triggered by overproduction of an "effect" of the
hormone.
Hormone secretion can be stimulated and inhibited by:

Other hormones (stimulating- or releasing -hormones)

Plasma concentrations of ions or nutrients, as well as binding globulins

Neurons and mental activity

Environmental changes, e.g., of light or temperature

One special group of hormones is the tropic hormones that stimulate the hormone production of
other endocrine glands. For example, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) causes growth and increased
activity of another endocrine gland, the thyroid, which increases output of thyroid hormones.
A recently identified class of hormones is that of the "hunger hormones" - ghrelin, orexin, and PYY 3-36 and "satiety hormones" - e.g., cholecystokinin, leptin, nesfatin-1, obestatin.
To release active hormones quickly into the circulation, hormone biosynthetic cells may produce and store
biologically inactive hormones in the form of pre- or prohormones. These can then be quickly converted
into their active hormone form in response to a particular stimulus.
Eicosanoids are considered to act as local hormones.

Effects of hormones[edit]
In mammals[edit]

Hormones have the following effects on the body:

stimulation or inhibition of growth

wake-sleep cycle and other circadian rhythms

mood swings

induction or suppression of apoptosis (programmed cell death)

activation or inhibition of the immune system

regulation of metabolism

preparation of the body for mating, fighting, fleeing, and other activity

preparation of the body for a new phase of life, such as puberty, parenting, and menopause

control of the reproductive cycle

hunger cravings

sexual arousal

A hormone may also regulate the production and release of other hormones. Hormone signals control the
internal environment of the body through homeostasis.

Chemical classes of hormones[edit]

Vertebrate hormones fall into three chemical classes:

Peptide hormones consist of chains of amino acids. Examples of small peptide hormones
are TRH and vasopressin. Peptides composed of scores or hundreds of amino acids are referred to
as proteins. Examples of protein hormones include insulin and growth hormone. More complex protein
hormones bear carbohydrate side-chains and are called glycoprotein hormones.Luteinizing
hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone and thyroid-stimulating hormone are glycoprotein hormones.
There is also another type of hydrophilic hormone called nonpeptide hormones. Although they don't
have peptide connections, they are assimilated as peptide hormones.

Lipid and phospholipid-derived hormones derive from lipids such as linoleic acid and arachidonic
acid and phospholipids. The main classes are the steroid hormones that derive from cholesteroland
the eicosanoids. Examples of steroid hormones are testosterone and cortisol. Sterol hormones such
as calcitriol are a homologous system. The adrenal cortex and the gonads are primary sources of
steroid hormones. Examples of eicosanoids are the widely studied prostaglandins and Lipoxins.

Monoamines derived from aromatic amino acids like phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan by the action
of aromatic amino acid decarboxylase enzymes.

Pharmacology[edit]
Many hormones and their analogues are used as medication. The most commonly prescribed hormones
are estrogens and progestagens (as methods of hormonal contraception and
as HRT),thyroxine (as levothyroxine, for hypothyroidism) and steroids (for autoimmune diseases and

several respiratory disorders). Insulin is used by many diabetics. Local preparations for use
inotolaryngology often contain pharmacologic equivalents of adrenaline, while steroid and vitamin
D creams are used extensively in dermatological practice.
A "pharmacologic dose" or "supraphysiological dose" of a hormone is a medical usage referring to an
amount of a hormone far greater than naturally occurs in a healthy body. The effects of pharmacologic
doses of hormones may be different from responses to naturally occurring amounts and may be
therapeutically useful, though not without potentially adverse side effects. An example is the ability of
pharmacologic doses of glucocorticoids to suppress inflammation.

Important human hormones[edit]

See: List of human hormones

See also[edit]

Autocrine signaling

Cytokine

Endocrine system

Endocrinology

Growth factor

Hormone disruptor

Intracrine

Neuroendocrinology

Paracrine signaling

Plant hormones or plant growth regulators

Sexual motivation and hormones

Hormone replacement therapy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Estrogen therapy" redirects here. For the use of estrogens in cancer treatment, see Estrogen therapy
(oncology).
Hormone replacement therapy refers to any form of hormone therapy wherein the patient, in the course
of medical treatment, receives hormones, either to supplement a lack of naturally occurring hormones, or to
substitute other hormones for naturally occurring hormones. Common forms of hormone replacement
therapy include:

Hormone replacement therapy for menopause is based on the idea that the treatment may prevent
discomfort caused by diminished circulating estrogen and progesterone hormones, or in the case of
the surgically or prematurely menopausal, that it may prolong life and may reduce incidence of

dementia.[1] It involves the use of one or more of a group of medications designed to artificially boost
hormone levels. The main types of hormones involved are estrogens, progesterone or progestins, and
sometimes testosterone. It often referred to as "treatment" rather than therapy.

Hormone replacement therapy for transgender people introduces hormones associated with
the gender that the patient identifies with (notably testosterone for trans men and estrogen for trans
women). Some intersex people may also receive HRT. Cross-sex hormone treatment for transgender
individuals is divided into two main types: hormone replacement therapy (female-to-male)and hormone
replacement therapy (male-to-female).

Androgen replacement therapy (andropausal and ergogenic use) is a hormone treatment often
prescribed to counter the effects of male hypogonadism. It is also prescribed to lessen the effects or
delay the onset of normal male aging. Additionally, androgen replacement therapy is used for men who
have lost their testicular function to disease, cancer, or other causes [citation needed].
Contents
[hide]

1 Rodent studies for HRT

2 Effects on women

3 See also

4 References

Rodent studies for HRT[edit]

Many studies on the effects of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) have been conducted on rats.
Predominantly, these studies have looked at the effects of estradiol, a type of estrogen, on rats
performances on various tasks. Often, the rodents will be ovariectomized, meaning they have their ovaries
removed. This prevents the production and release of estrogen and progesterone, and mimics the
occurrence of menopause in human females. Once the ovaries have been removed, researchers will
administer estrogen, progesterone, or both to see what the effects are on the rats behaviors. Rats are
good animal models because they have similar cognitive deficits to humans as they age, and administering
hormone therapy to them is easy.[2]
Overall, the results of these studies are non-conclusive. Some studies find impairments due to the HRT,
where others find improvements. A common theme that runs through many studies is that rats that are
given HRT perform better on tasks activating the hippocampus, and worse on tasks involving the prefrontal
cortex. For example, Wang et al. (2009) found that ovariectomized rats that were exposed to estradiol did
considerably worse than rats who were not exposed to estradiol, on a delayed spatial reasoning task a
task that activates the prefrontal cortex.[3] Another study that looked at the effects of estradiol in
ovariectomized rats, found that when HRT was administered immediately following the removal of
the ovaries, there was a decrease in anxious and depressive behaviors, while also improvement on
cognitive performance on an object-placement task (though this was a hippocampal-based task).[4] Hence,

the timing of the hormone replacement therapy and the activated brain regions are significant factors in
assessing effectiveness of HRT. Another important aspect is whether or not the treatment is chronic or
cyclic. Chronic treatment is daily doses of the hormone, while cyclic treatment is based on the normal
cycling patterns of that hormone. One study found that the group of rodents, who received estradiol and a
type of progesterone chronically, performed the worst on the maze task; whereas, the group who received
only estradiol cyclically showed some improvements.[5]
More research in this area is needed. Some important results can be gathered from these rodent studies
though. First, that differing brain regions may respond in a variety of ways to HRT. Second, that the timing
of the therapy is integral to the chances of success. Third, that how the hormones are administered, either
chronically or cyclically, may make an important difference in their effectiveness.

Effects on women[edit]
As recently as 2005 women have had a positive attitude towards hormone replacement therapy but based
on the empirical data these attitudes may be overly optimistic.[6] Currently, however, most women do not
find HRT to be an effective solution. There is still much to learn about how HRT affects people. Below we
talk about a few of the positive and negative effects of HRT. Generally, HRT is initially helpful but if used for
a long period of time it loses its effectiveness. On the other hand, there are times when HRT is not only
ineffective but actually detrimental to people.
Hormone replacement therapy is not always good. An example of this is in a study where women going
through menopause using HRT with Progestin as a major component of the therapy show a few negative
effects on hearing. Not only does the Progestin decrease the functionality of many regions of the ear it also
reduces the effectiveness in parts of the central nervous system used for hearing.[7] Also in some situations
it has been shown that menopausal women who are caregivers and receive HRT can have an increased
chance for cardiovascular issues. As caregivers it is implied that they have more acute stress in their lives
and that acute stress along with the HRT is priming negative cardiovascular effects.[8]
Hormone replacement therapy can have beneficial effects. In a study women taking estrogen through HRT
showed that the estrogen positively affects the prefrontal cortex by boosting the working memory. This
suggests that estrogen may play a key role in certain frontal lobe functions in women. [9] Women using HRT
after menopause have no additional weight gain compared to women who do not use HRT.[10] Also women
who use HRT with an estrogen component show positive effects in their sex life (mainly increasing their sex
drive and sexual sensitivity) but the effects are inconsistent across women. Sadly, these sexual
improvements can dissipate after receiving HRT for extended periods of time.[11]