PITUITARY,

ADRENAL,
& THYROID
GLANDS
 IS THERE REALLY AN
“ENDOCRINE SYSTEM”?
• One of the body’s two great integrating systems
• Concerned mainly with long-term adaptations,
not short-term response
• Closely coordinated with the nervous system
both physically and physiologically
• Many similarities of structure and function exist
between the two systems
• Perhaps more accurate to speak of a
NEUROENDOCRINE SYSTEM
 ENDOCRINE ORGANS

• PITUITARY GLAND
• ADRENAL GLAND
• THYROID GLAND
• PARATHYROID GLAND
• PINEAL GLAND
• REPRODUCTIVE GLANDS
• “OTHER” GLANDS
– Many organs are at least partially endocrine!
 HORMONES
• The product of endocrine glands

• DEFINITION:
Any chemical substance secreted
into the blood stream which has a
distant organ or tissue as its target;
and which transmits a message to
that target which results in action
being taken.
 COMMON FEATURES
• Endocrine organs are usually:
– VASCULAR
• Dependent on blood to transport product
• Cord-and-sinus architecture maximizes
cell/blood contact in some
– EPITHELIAL
• Secretion is a secondary function of
epithelia!
– BORING
• All look alike…sort of
 PITUITARY GLAND
• “MASTER GLAND”
– Not an accurate statement!
– Located on the ventral surface of the
brain and partially derived from brain
rudiment
• Site of coordination of endocrine &
nervous systems
– Structure reflects duality of origin and
function
– Secretions affect growth and general
metabolism
 PITUITARY
GLAND
• “Hypophysis” from
Greek physis =
“growth”
• Depends from
hypothalamic
region of brain
• Housed in a pocket
in sphenoid bone
• Served by BV’s
entering & leaving
via its capsule
• Produces
numerous TARGET ORGANS OF THE PITUITARY GLAND
hormones
 NOMENCLATURE
ABANDON ALL PREVIOUS
TERMINOLOGY, YE WHO
ENTER HERE!
Ye shall speak only of:

• ADENOHYPOPHYSIS: Portion of gut origin,

epithelial in nature
• NEUROHYPOPHYSIS: Portion from the
brain, which retains its attachment to it
ORIGINS OF THE PITUITARY
• Dorsal pocket of the foregut
(Rathke’s Pouch)
• Ventral depression of the
diencephalon/3rd ventricle
(Infundibulum)
– Fuse to form a single organ with distinct
regional histology and functionality
• NEUROHYPOHYSIS
• ADENOHYPOPHYSIS
– Ectodermal derivatives
ORIGINS OF THE
PITUITARY
• ADENO-
HYPOPHYSIS
• Epithelial In
Nature
– Pars distalis
– Pars
intermedia
– Pars tuberalis
• NEURO-
HYPOPHYSIS
• Essentially
Nervous Tissue
– Infundibulum
– Stalk
– Pars nervosa
• Special Cell
Types in each
region
 PARS
DISTALIS
• Cord-and-
sinus layout
– Similar in
other AH
regions
• Receives
blood from
median
eminence
• Several cell
types
producing
different
hormones
 CELLS OF THE PARS DISTALIS

• ACIDOPHILS
– SOMATROPES
• (GH)
– MAMMOTROPES
• (PRL)
• BASOPHILS
– GONADOTROPES
• (FSH / LH)
– THYROTROPES
• (TSH)
– CORTICOTROPES
• (ACTH)
 PARS INTERMEDIA
• Pars
intermedia
lies against
pars
nervosa
• Produces
Melanocyte
Stimulating
Hormone
(MSH)
• Shares
venous
outflow with
P. distalis
 PARS NERVOSA
• An outpost of the brain
– Physical contact and dependence on brain is
retained
• Produces no hormones of its own
– Stores and releases two hormones
• Oxytocin
• Vasopressin
• Intrinsic cells (pituicytes) are a form of
glial cells similar to astrocytes
– Pituicytes are about 90-95% of cells
 PARS NERVOSA
• Lumen of PN and stalk continuous with 3rd ventricle
VASCULAR ARRANGEMENTS
OF THE PITUITARY
• HYPOTHALAMO-HYPOHYSEAL PORTAL
SYSTEM
– Blood supply is via hypophyseal arteries to the
median eminence of the hypothalamus
– Capillaries of the hypothalamus drain into the
sinuses of the pars distalis and intermedia
– HYPOTHALAMIC RELEASING FACTORS from
the BRAIN target the cells of the pituitary
itself…hence: THE BRAIN IS AN ENDOCRINE
ORGAN
HYPOTHALAMIC RELEASING
FACTORS
• RF’s are produced in neurons and released
directly via neuron-capillary “synapses”
– RF’s are released into the blood flowing through
capillaries of the median eminence
• Releasing factors are HORMONES, by definition
– Targets for these hormones are the cells of the
adenohypophysis
• The brain controls the pituitary by hormonal
interaction
– Feedback from other glands regulates pituitary and
hypothalamus
 FEEDBACK
CONTROL
1. Neural input (e.g. cold
stress) is detected by
sensory system
2. Brain sends out
releasing factor (e.g.
TRH)
3. Thyroid is stimulated;
more thyroxin produced
4. Basal metabolic rate
increases
5. Increase in circulating
thyroxin feeds back to
pituitary and
hypothalamus to
decrease synthesis of
releasing factor
 PARS NERVOSA: THE BRAIN'S STORAGE UNIT

• Brain produces
OXYTOCIN &
VASOPRESSIN in
NEURONS
– These HORMONES
are transported in
AXONS to the PN
– Axons terminate
on BLOOD
VESSELS
– Neurosecretory
granules released
at a “synapse”
between axon and
BV’s
HORMONE RELEASE IN THE PARS
NERVOSA
 THE TRUE “MASTER
GLAND”
• The Brain is the Boss!
– Short-term responses use nervous circuits
– Long-term adaptation to conditions, nominally
via the endocrine system, is ultimately under
neuronal control
• Brain receives & integrates stimuli
– Through releasing factors sends orders to
pituitary
– Pituitary controls the other organs and tissues
• The pituitary is merely an “Manager
Gland”
ADRENAL GLAND
• “Two glands for the price
of one”
– Adrenal medulla and
cortex have vastly
different origins and
functions
• Adrenal cortex a “servant”
of the pituitary
• Adrenal medulla another
example of direct nervous
control over endocrine
functions
• Adrenal gland functions:
– Regulation of
carbohydrate and mineral
metabolism (cortex)
– “Fight or flight” reaction
(medulla)
 ADRENAL CORTEX
• Three regions
– ZONA
GLOMERULOSA
– ZONA
FASCICULATA
– (ZONA
RETICULARIS)
• Cells have steroid
synthesis capability
– Elevated levels of
lipids
– Large amounts of
SER
• Cortical blood
supply is
independent of that
of the medulla
 VASCULAR SUPPLY
• Capsular arteries supply the cortex only
– Arterial input discharged into sinusoids
• Separate arteries serve the medulla
– Isolated from cortical blood
• Separation reflects origin from two
rudiments
• Venous outflows are combined
• Cord-and-sinus ADRENAL CORTEX
architecture
• Cortical cells
dump product
into sinuses for
release
– Glomerulosa &
Fasciculata
control
carbohydrate &
mineral
metabolism
• Corticosteroid
hormones
• ACTH from
pituitary
triggers
release
• “Region of little Z. GLOMERULOSA
globes”
• Cells form arcades
or globular arrays
• Immediately
beneath capsule
• Cells contain
elevated amounts
of SER
• Produce
ALDOSTERONE to
regulate sodium
retention
– Renin-Angiotensin
cascade
• Cells Z. FASCICULATA
arranged into
straight rows
with sinuses
between
• Produce
CORTISOL +
androgens
– Regulates
metabolism
of
carbohydrate
proteins, fat
– Controlled by
ACTH from
pituitary
 THE ADRENAL MEDULLA
• Cells are derived from neural crest
epithelium; migrate in during
development
• Produce EPINEPHRINE &
NOREPINEPHRINE
– EP and NEP are known to be
neurotransmitters in other locations
– All cells seem to have receptors for EP
and NEP
 ADRENAL MEDULLA
• Cortico-medullary
boundary fairly
distinct
• Special stains
reveal presence of
axons
• Axons synapse
with cells of the
medulla directly
• Release of
hormones is due
to DIRECT
NEURAL
STIMULATION of
medulla
FUNCTIONAL IMPLICATIONS
• Adrenal medulla a site of direct neuro-endocrine
interaction
– Direct stimulus to release hormones is unique
– Different mechanism from neurohypophyseal release
• Origins and nature of medullary cells indicate
they are modified neurons
– From neural crest ectoderm
• EP and NEP are a “General Quarters” alarm to
which all cells can respond
– System bridges temporal gap between instantaneous
and long-term responses
 THYROID GLAND
• Unique among
endocrine organs
– Stores product
– Structure is
follicular
• Products are used
to control general
level of body
metabolism
– Under control of the
pituitary
– Thyroid disorders
fairly common and
clinically important
 THYROID FOLLICLES
• Hollow
structures
• Wall of simple
cuboidal
epithelium
• Stored product
in interior is
COLLOID
• BV’s envelop
the walls of the
follicles
BLOOD SUPPLY TO FOLLICLES
 “C-CELLS” OF THYROID FOLLICLE
• In wall of
follicle
– Do not
produce
thyroxin or
colloid
– Produce
CALCITONIN
– Regulate
calcium
metabolism by
stimulating
osteoblast
activity
• Antagonist
to hormone
of the
parathyroid
gland
• Paired glands,
embedded in or PARATHYROID
near the thyroid
• Produce
PARATHYROID
HORMONE (PTH)
• PTH stimulates
osteoclast activity
and calcium
release from bone
• Balance of PTH
and calcitonin
essential to proper
calcium
metabolism
“Here,” he said, placing a finger at the base of Tarzan’s skull,
“there lies a small, oval, reddish gray body containing a liquid
which influences the growth of tissues and organs.”

—Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950)

Tarzan and the Ant Men (1924) Chapter XIII