News tagged with endocrinology
Study findings significant for treating infections in Type 1 diabetes
A small University at Buffalo study has found for the first time that in Type 1 diabetics, insulin injections exert a strong anti-inflammatory effect at the cellular and molecular level, while even small amounts of glucose ...
Diabetes
May 16, 2013 |
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How belly fat differs from thigh fat—and why it matters
Men tend to store fat in the abdominal area, but don't usually have much in the way of hips or thighs. Women, on the other hand, are more often pear-shaped—storing more fat on their hips and thighs than in the belly. Why ...
Medical research
Jan 11, 2013 |
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Single gene cause of insulin sensitivity may offer insight for treating diabetes
(Medical Xpress)—The first single gene cause of increased sensitivity to the hormone insulin has been discovered by a team of Oxford University researchers.
Diabetes
Sep 12, 2012 |
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Physical activity reduces compensatory weight gain after liposuction
Abdominal liposuction triggers a compensatory increase in visceral fat, which is correlated with cardiovascular disease, but this effect can be counteracted by physical activity, according to a recent study in the Journal of ...
Other
Jun 13, 2012 |
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Low-fiber diet puts adolescents at higher risk of cardiovascular disease
Adolescents who don't eat enough fiber tend to have bigger bellies and higher levels of inflammatory factors in their blood, both major risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes, researchers report.
Health
Jun 01, 2012 |
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Researchers discover mushrooms can provide as much vitamin D as supplements
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have discovered that eating mushrooms containing Vitamin D2 can be as effective at increasing and maintaining vitamin D levels (25–hydroxyvitamin D) as taking ...
Health
Apr 22, 2013 |
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Calorie-restricted weight loss restores ghrelin sensitivity
(HealthDay)—In a mouse model, calorie-restricted weight loss reverses the high-fat diet-induced ghrelin resistance that may contribute to rebound weight gain, according to research published online Jan. ...
Health
Jan 21, 2013 |
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What really makes us fat? Article questions our understanding of the cause of obesity
If we are to make any progress in tackling the obesity crisis, we have to look again at what really makes us fat, claims an article published in this week's BMJ.
Overweight and Obesity
Apr 16, 2013 |
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Gestational exposure to urban air pollution linked to vitamin D deficiency in newborns
Gestational exposure to ambient urban air pollution, especially during late pregnancy, may contribute to lower vitamin D levels in offspring, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's ...
Health
Sep 13, 2012 |
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Study examines the role adverse reactions play in statin discontinuation
Despite their well-documented benefits, statins, drugs used to lower cholesterol, are commonly discontinued in routine care. Statin discontinuation has been linked to increased risk for cardiovascular events and death in ...
Cardiology
Apr 01, 2013 |
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A Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil may protect your bones
New research suggests that a key ingredient to keeping osteoporosis in check may be found in the traditional Mediterranean diet—olive oil. Osteoporosis is a disease where the density and quality of bone ...
Health
Aug 24, 2012 |
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Low levels of vitamin D are associated with mortality in older adults
Low levels of vitamin D and high levels of parathyroid hormone are associated with increased mortality in African American and Caucasian older adults, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's ...
Health
Oct 02, 2012 |
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Personalized medicine eliminates need for drug in two children
Using genome-wide analysis, investigators at the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Center and the University of Montreal have potentially eliminated a lifetime drug prescription that two children with a previously ...
Genetics
Jan 31, 2013 |
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Limiting polyunsaturated fatty acid levels in pregnancy may influence body fat of children, researchers find
(Medical Xpress)—Southampton researchers have demonstrated that mothers who have higher levels of n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), which are found in cooking oils and nuts, during pregnancy have ...
Health
Jan 10, 2013 |
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Mediterranean diet enriched with olive oil may protect bone
A study to be published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM) shows consumption of a Mediterranean diet enriched with olive oil for two years is associated with increased serum osteoca ...
Health
Aug 15, 2012 |
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Endocrinology
Endocrinology (from Greek ἔνδον, endo, "within"; κρῑνω, krīnō, "to separate"; and -λογία, -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 such as proliferation, growth, and differentiation (including histogenesis and organogenesis) and the coordination of metabolism, respiration, excretion, movement, reproduction, and sensory perception depend on chemical cues, substances synthesized and secreted by specialized cells.
Endocrinology is concerned with the study of the biosynthesis, storage, chemistry, 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 and 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 cell). A neuroendocrine 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:
Between these is a "transduction mechanism" in which hormone binding induces allosteric modification that, in turn, produces the appropriate response.
For more information about Endocrinology, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
