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gigantism
gigantism condition in which an animal or plant is far greater than normal in size. Plants are often deliberately bred to increase their size. However, among animals, gigantism is usually the result of hereditary and glandular disturbance. Among humans, gigantism is produced by an oversecretion of ...
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pituitary gland
pituitary gland small oval endocrine gland that lies at the base of the brain . It is sometimes called the master gland of the body because all the other endocrine glands depend on its secretions for stimulation (see endocrine system ).
Anatomy and Function
Physiologically, the pituitar...
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gonadotropic hormone
gonadotropic hormone or gonadotropin, any one of three glycoprotein (see protein ) hormones released by either the anterior pituitary gland or the placenta (the organ in which maternal and fetal blood exchange nutrients and waste products) that have various effects upon the ovaries and t...
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growth hormone
growth hormone or somatotropin , glycoprotein hormone released by the anterior pituitary gland that is necessary for normal skeletal growth in humans (see protein ). Evidence suggests that the secretion of human growth hormone (HGH) is regulated by the release of certain peptides by the hy...
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hormone
hormone secretory substance carried from one gland or organ of the body via the bloodstream to more or less specific tissues, where it exerts some influence upon the metabolism of the target tissue. Normally, various hormones are produced and secreted by the endocrine glands (see endocrine system ...
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antidiuretic hormone
antidiuretic hormone , polypeptide hormone secreted by the posterior pituitary gland . Its principal action is to regulate the amount of water excreted by the kidneys. Antidiuretic hormone (ADH), known also as vasopressin, causes the kidneys to resorb water directly from the renal tubules, thus con...
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acromegaly
acromegaly , adult endocrine disorder resulting from hypersecretion of growth hormone produced by the pituitary gland. Since the bones cannot increase in length after full growth is attained, there is a disproportionate thickening of bones, predominantly in the skull and small bones of the hands and...
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cortisol
cortisol or hydrocortisone, steroid hormone that in humans is the major circulating hormone of the cortex, or outer layer, of the adrenal gland . Like cortisone , cortisol is classed as a glucocorticoid; it stimulates liver glycogen formation while it decreases the rate of glucose utilizati...
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oxytocin
oxytocin , hormone released from the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland that facilitates uterine contractions and the milk-ejection reflex. The structure of oxytocin, a cyclic peptide consisting of nine amino acids, was determined in 1953 and in the same year it was synthesized in the labor...
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endocrine system
endocrine system , body control system composed of a group of glands that maintain a stable internal environment by producing chemical regulatory substances called hormones . The endocrine system includes the pituitary gland , thyroid gland , parathyroid glands , adrenal gland , pancreas , ov...
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