Endocrine System Vocab
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Created by:
cupingood18 on February 22, 2012
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21 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Endocrine System | Body system that includes internal organs that secrete hormones. |
| Hormones | Steroidal or amino acid-based molecules released to the blood that act as chemical messengers to regulate specific body functions. |
| Endocrine glands | Ductless glands that empty their hormonal products directly into the blood. |
| Steroid | Group of chemical substances including certain hormones and cholesterol; they are fat soluble and contain little oxygen. |
| Eicosanoid | These biologically active lipids (made from arachidonic acid) are released by nearly all cell membranes. |
| Target cells | a given hormone influences the activity of only certain tissue cells, |
| Up-regulation | target cells form more receptors in response to rising blood levels of the specific hormones to which they respond, a phenomenon |
| Down-regulaton | involves loss of receptors and prevents the target cells from overreacting to persistently high hormone levels. |
| Humoral stimuli | Some endocrine glands secrete their hormones in direct response to changing blood levels of certain critical ions and nutrients. |
| Neural stimuli | nerve fibers stimulate hormone release. The classic example of neural stimuli is sympathetic nervous system stimulation of the adrenal medulla to release catecholamines (norepinephrine and epinephrine) during periods of stress |
| Hormonal stimuli | many endocrine glands release their hormones in response to hormones produced by other endocrine organs, |
| Pineal gland | a structurally simple hormone that communicates information about environmental lighting to various parts of the body |
| Hypothalamus | a portion of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions |
| Pituitary gland | Neuroendocrine gland located beneath the brain that serves a variety of functions including regulation of gonads, thyroid, adrenal cortex, lactation, and water balance. |
| Thyroid gland | One of the largest of the body's endocrine glands; straddles the anterior trachea. |
| Parathyroid gland | Small endocrine glands located on the posterior aspect of the thyroid gland. |
| Thymus | a lymphoid organ situated in the neck of vertebrates that produces T cells for the immune system. The human thymus becomes much smaller at the approach of puberty. |
| Adrenal gland | pyramid-shaped organs perched atop the kidneys |
| Pancreas | Gland located behind the stomach, between the spleen and the duodenum; produces both endocrine and exocrine secretions. |
| Ovary | small, oval organs located in the female's abdominopelvic cavity. Besides producing ova, or eggs, the ovaries produce several hormones, most importantly estrogens and progesterone |
| Testis | located in an extra-abdominal skin pouch called the scrotum, produce sperm and male sex hormones, primarily testosterone |
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