Systems Physiology - Anatomy

The cauda equina is the bottom of the conus medullaris. It extends from the conus medullaris and terminates at C0 vertebrae.

The inferior alveolar nerve passes through the mandibular foramen. It has motor and sensory components. It serves to give the lower face and jaw sensation and is also responsible for stimulating the muscles for movement of the jaw.

C fibers are associated with chronic pain perception because they transmit "slow pain". This is due to the fibers being unmyelinated. In addition, these fibers send projections to the limbic system and the thalamus which causes the brain to develop chronic pain associations.

The heart secretes atrial natriuretic peptide, which acts on the kidneys. Oxytocin is secreted by the posterior pituitary. Thymosin is secreted by the thymus gland. Androgens are secreted by the adrenal cortex.

Cortisol is the only steroid hormone listed, some other examples would be estrogen and androgens. Insulin and parathyroid hormones are peptide hormones. Epinephrine is a catecholamine, which is a tyrosine derivative.

Thyroid hormone is secreted by the thyroid and plays a role in bone growth, neural maturation, and the body's basal metabolic rate. It is released in response to thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) from the anterior pituitary, and targets cells throughout the body. Hypothyroidism is characterized by reduced synthesis of thyroid hormones, and can present as weight gain, fatigue, and sensitivity to cold.

Cortisol, a hormone secreted by the adrenal gland, functions to maintain blood pressure by upregulating the number of alpha-1 receptors on arterioles.

Gastrin is a hormone secreted by the G cells of the stomach that acts to increase gastric acid secretion, increases the growth of gastric mucosa, increases gastric motility, and stimulates the secretion of digestive enzymes. In addition to stimulating the release of pepsinogen, gastrin stimulates the pancreas to release digestive enzymes. Bicarbonate, however, is not an enzyme and is stimulated by another hormone.

Secretin is a hormone secreted by the S cells in the duodenum that acts to increase pancreatic bicarbonate secretion and decrease gastric acid secretion.

Remember that hormones are generally slow-acting in the body. Glands will respond to the conditions of the body by elevating hormones in a negative feedback fashion. If a person has high blood glucose levels, it is expected that the body is going to increase hormones that act to lower the blood glucose levels.

Insulin is responsible for stimulating glucose sequestration for use in cell metabolism or storage in the liver as glycogen. As a result, insulin levels would be elevated in a person with high blood sugar levels.

Glucagon is functional antagonist of insulin, and serves to elevate blood glucose levels through glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis. Cortisol is released by the adrenal cortex in response to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and long-term stressors, such as prolonged hunger, thirst, and heat/cold exposure. Thyroxine (T4) is a thyroid hormone that mediates basal metabolic rate and is released in response to thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).

While testosterone is associated with the growth spurt during puberty, it is also responsible for the closing of the epiphyseal plates on long bones. This process helps stop the growth in length of the body.

Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and is secreted by Leydig cells of the testes. Testosterone is a steroid hormone, meaning it can enter cells and act directly on DNA as a transcription factor. In this way, it mediates the production of sperm, anatomical growth, and development of secondary sex characteristics in males.

Hypersecretion, or oversecretion, of the growth hormone during childhood can typically result in gigantism. The person will be very tall and have normal face and body proportions; the growth plates are still present at this time and they all receive a larger amount of the hormone.

Dwarfism would be a result of hyposecretion, or undersecretion, of growth hormone during childhood.

Acromegaly is caused by hypersecretion of growth hormone, but during adulthood as opposed to childhood.

Erythropoietin acts on red bone marrow to increase the amount of red blood cells being produced. Aldosterone is responsible for electrolyte homeostasis via the excretory system. Cortisol is the hormone associated with stress response, and regulates blood glucose levels. Lastly, prolactin is responsible for milk production.

Vasopressin, also known as antidiuretic hormone, is released by the posterior pituitary and targets the kidney for water reabsorption. Milk production is controlled by prolactin. Milk ejection is an effect of oxytocin. Lastly, the thymosin and thymopoietin are responsible for lymphocyte development.

ADH inserts special channels into the collecting ducts of the kidney that allow for water absorption from the fluid that is destined to become urine. An increasing amount of ADH would decrease the amount of urine voided from a person as more water is being absorbed in the distal convoluted tubule and collecting ducts of the kidneys. ADH also constricts arterioles everywhere in the body, which increases the peripheral resistance and arterial pressure.

Erythropoietin is a glycoprotein that increases the production of red blood cells. Erythropoietin is secreted by the kidneys and liver, and activates red bone marrow to induce hematopoiesis.

Oxytocin has many effects in the body. First, it stimulates contraction of the myoepithelial cells which surround mammary alveoli in the mammary gland. This causes milk to be ejected. Oxytocin is also released during labor and works to enhance uterine contractions in order to facilitate birth. Lastly, oxytocin is widely known as the "bonding hormone," and studies show that its presence establishes maternal behavior. Oxytocin does not, however, form and regulate the female reproductive system; this is done by the female sex hormone, estrogen.

Estrogen, androgen, progesterone, cortisol, and aldosterone are all steroid hormones. Thyroid-stimulating hormone belongs to the class of hormones that are proteins, glycoproteins, and peptide hormones. Specifically, thyroid-stimulating hormone is a glycoprotein.

Steroids, when taken exogenously, diminish the production of steroids in the body. This can lead to atrophy of the adrenal glands (responsible for producing cortisol-stress steroid hormone). Thus, when patients are taking steroids for whatever reasons (sports, chemo, infection and etc) it is important for the steroids to be tapered off and not removed immediately since the body needs time to begin to reproduce the hormone again.

When thinking of hormones, it helps to remember that they are generally slow acting, indirect, and long lasting. All endocrine hormones travel through the bloodstream in order to reach their target cells. It can help to compare the activity of hormones to the activity of neurotransmitters, which are fast acting and have immediate effects on their target cell. Consider the effects of acetylcholine release at a neuromuscular junction in comparison to growth hormone release into the blood. The muscle twitch is much more transient and quick to react, whereas the effects of growth hormone can take much longer to appear.

All steriod hormones are lipid soluble and will thus bind either nuclear or cytoplasmic receptors. Most peptide hormones are water soluble and cannot diffuse through the plasma membrane of the target cell; they must bind to receptors embedded in the cell membrane. The one exception to this rule is thyroid hormone. It is a peptide hormone, but is a lipophilic tyrosine derivative and binds to nuclear receptors.

A positive feedback loop features further deviation from normal. In the case of childbirth, oxytocin produces uterine contractions, which then causes more oxytocin to be released and more uterine contractions to occur until the baby is delivered. A negative feedback loop returns the body to normal conditions.